Global Robotics Industry: A USD 49.5 Billion Market in Which the Industrial Robot Is Only a Third
MRR® Industry Intelligence Briefing Robotics · Industrial Automation · Defense Autonomy · Surgical and Consumer Robots
In 2025 the world installed about 603,000 industrial robots and shipped about 32.7 million cleaning robots, a ratio of more than 50 to 1. The industrial robot is still the largest category by value, at a third of the market, but it is now one of six very different businesses sharing the word “robotics”.
Executive Summary
The global robotics industry is valued at approximately USD 49.5 billion in 2025 and is projected to reach USD 76.5 billion by 2031, a 7.5% CAGR. Unit volume rises from about 35.1 million to about 49.8 million units. The scope is robot hardware sold to end users, calculated as units multiplied by average selling price. Software licences, peripherals, systems integration, robot components such as reducers and servo drives, and after-sales services are excluded. The report treats the figure as a bottom-up estimate with low-to-medium confidence: no audited industry-wide sales series exists, and the 2031 outcome ranges from about USD 67.1 billion to USD 87.5 billion between the bear and bull cases.
| Robot Type | 2025 (USD Mn) | 2031 (USD Mn) | CAGR | 2025 Share |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Industrial Robots | 16,602.6 | 22,578.8 | 5.3% | 33.5% |
| Service Robots: Personal & Domestic | 12,655.6 | 16,252.5 | 4.3% | 25.5% |
| Service Robots: Professional | 8,049.1 | 16,747.7 | 13.0% | 16.2% |
| Aerospace and Defense Robots | 7,316.5 | 12,981.0 | 10.0% | 14.8% |
| Autonomous Mobile Robots & AGVs | 2,937.5 | 4,524.2 | 7.5% | 5.9% |
| Collaborative Robots / Cobots | 1,980.0 | 3,367.9 | 9.3% | 4.0% |
Source: Navadhi Market Research, Global Robotics Industry Strategic Research Report 2026-2031.
Why a Third of the Market Is Not the Headline Story
Industrial Robots: Large, Mature and Cyclical
Published installation data put 2025 industrial robot installations at 603,307 units, up 11%, on an operating stock of about 5.08 million. China accounted for 295,000 of the roughly 542,000 units installed in 2024, a 54% share. The cycle is uneven: European installations fell 14% in 2025, US installations fell 9% in 2024, and the same data forecast 655,000 units in 2026 and 806,000 by 2029. At company level, FANUC reported robot segment sales of JPY 378.6 billion for its fiscal year ended March 2026, up 14.9% and 44% of group net sales, while KUKA recorded a net loss of EUR 43.5 million in 2024.
Personal and Domestic Robots: Volume Without Margin Headlines
About 32.7 million cleaning robots shipped in 2025, up 20.1%, which makes personal and domestic robots a quarter of market value (USD 12.7 billion) at an average price of a few hundred dollars. The segment grows slowest of the six at 4.3% because unit growth meets price erosion of an estimated 1.5% a year. Roborock reported 2025 revenue of RMB 18.7 billion, up 56.5%, and Ecovacs reported CNY 19.0 billion, up 15.1%.
Professional Service Robots: The Fastest-Growing Type
Professional service robots grow at 13.0% a year because three businesses converge in one segment: logistics, surgery and field service. Transportation and logistics robots reached about 117,500 units in 2025, up 21%. Intuitive Surgical placed 1,721 da Vinci systems and reported revenue of USD 10.06 billion, and 8,400 surgical robots were recorded in 2025, up 57%. Symbotic reported fiscal 2025 revenue of USD 2.25 billion, up 26%.
Defense: Where the Autonomy Budget Actually Goes
Aerospace and defense robots are valued at USD 7.3 billion in 2025 and grow at 10.0% a year, the second-fastest type. The US FY2026 budget request for autonomous systems is USD 13.4 billion, but it is not spread evenly: USD 9.4 billion is for aerial autonomy, USD 1.7 billion for maritime, USD 0.73 billion for underwater and only USD 0.21 billion, about 1.6%, for ground systems. Ground robots are where price and volume differ most. Ukraine reported using nearly 15,000 ground robotic systems in 2025 at roughly USD 12,000 per small robot, while a fully equipped MQ-9A costs more than USD 50 million.
The defense estimate is built from contract evidence rather than market-research claims: Baykar’s 2025 revenue of USD 2.5 billion (88% exported to 37 countries), US foreign-military-sale notices for MQ-9B aircraft, a USD 300 million US Army small-drone program for FY2025, and a Marine Corps order of USD 42.5 million for more than 600 reusable loitering munition systems. Notice values are ceilings that include support and weapons, not unit prices, so the report treats them as bounds. Expendable first-person-view drones, one-way attack munitions, counter-drone systems and crewed aircraft are excluded from scope.
Humanoids: Real Shipments, Small Dollars
Approximately 7,000 full-size humanoid robots were sold in 2025. Unitree Robotics reported revenue of about USD 252 million, up 335%, with more than 5,500 humanoids shipped, UBTech generated RMB 821 million in humanoid-related revenue, and Hyundai Motor Group plans a Boston Dynamics factory with capacity of 30,000 units a year. Even so, humanoids are well under 1% of 2025 market value in the model. The category is a growth option, not yet a market, and the report prices it that way.
Ownership Is Moving Faster Than the Technology
| Company | Current Development | Analyst Note |
|---|---|---|
| ABB Robotics | Agreed sale of its robotics division to SoftBank Group at an enterprise value of USD 5.4 billion, announced October 2025 | Reshapes ownership of one of the established suppliers that anchor global industrial robot supply; regulatory clearance was required in the EU, China and the United States |
| KUKA AG | About 95% owned by Midea Group; net loss of EUR 43.5 million in 2024 | Chinese ownership of a European robot maker; cyclical pressure in Europe |
| iRobot Corporation | Underwent Chapter 11 restructuring; acquired by Shenzhen Picea in January 2026 | Consumer robotics pioneer; restructured under Chapter 11 before the acquisition |
| Estun Automation | Chinese industrial robot maker gaining share at home against incumbent multinationals | Illustrates the deepening presence of Chinese manufacturers in the installed base |
| Baykar | 2025 revenue of about USD 2.5 billion, of which about USD 2.2 billion is exports | Private Turkish unmanned aircraft supplier; 88% of revenue comes from exports to 37 countries |
Source: Navadhi Market Research, Global Robotics Industry Strategic Research Report 2026-2031; company disclosures and press announcements.
Asia Pacific is the largest region at USD 24.2 billion (48.9% of 2025 value), and North America is the fastest-growing at an 8.7% CAGR, helped by defense autonomy, e-commerce fulfilment and surgical robotics. The report profiles 30 companies across the value chain, from FANUC, ABB Robotics, Yaskawa and KUKA to Intuitive Surgical, Symbotic, UBTech, Roborock, Baykar and Unitree.
What We Could Not Verify
No verified company-level revenue shares exist for most robot types, so the report does not present market-share or concentration indices. Where figures come from private companies, third-party estimates or unaudited sources, they are labelled. Approximately 75% of the 2025 base value rests on channels graded A or B on the report’s evidence scale; the remaining 25%, dominated by defense sub-categories, rests on sourced anchors with estimated scaling. Country values are analyst allocations reconciled to regional totals, not published national series.
Analyst Perspective
Robotics is no longer one market. Industrial robots follow the capital-spending cycle, cleaning robots follow consumer electronics prices, surgical and logistics robots follow procedure and e-commerce volumes, and defense robots follow budgets that favor air and sea over land. Ownership is shifting from European and Japanese incumbents toward Chinese and financial owners. Buyers and investors should size each business on its own drivers rather than on a single robotics growth rate.
Strategic Implications
| Observation | Implication |
|---|---|
| Industrial robots are a third of value but follow a cyclical installation pattern | Treat the segment as a capital-spending indicator, with regional divergence between China and Europe |
| Professional service robots grow at 13.0% across logistics, surgery and field service | Demand rests on procedure and fulfilment volumes rather than factory output |
| Only about 1.6% of the US autonomy request is for ground systems | Air and sea platforms carry the near-term defense value; ground robots remain a volume and price-dispersion story |
| Humanoids sold about 7,000 units in 2025 but are well under 1% of value | Plan on option value, and verify shipment claims against disclosed revenue |
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the size of the global robotics industry?
Approximately USD 49.5 billion in 2025, projected to reach approximately USD 76.5 billion by 2031, at a 7.5% CAGR.
What does the report count as the robotics market?
Robot hardware sold to end users, calculated as units multiplied by average selling price. Software, peripherals, systems integration, components and services are excluded.
How is the market segmented?
By robot type (industrial, collaborative, autonomous mobile robots and AGVs, professional service, personal and domestic, and aerospace and defense), by eight application verticals, by five regions and by named countries.
Which robot type is the largest and which grows fastest?
Industrial robots are the largest at 33.5% of 2025 value. Professional service robots grow fastest, at 13.0% a year.
How is the defense segment sized?
From public contracts, budgets and company disclosures, treating government notice values as ceilings. Expendable one-way drones, counter-drone systems, munitions and crewed aircraft are excluded.
How many companies does the report cover?
30 companies across the value chain, with value forecasts for every segment, region and country.
For complete segment, regional, and company-level detail, refer to our Global Robotics Industry Strategic Research Report. For engagement-specific analysis, commission custom research.