Robots Rule! Cobot Craze, AI Amazes, and Apollo's Humanoid Debuts Amid M&A Mania

This is you Robotics Industry Insider: AI & Automation News podcast.

The robotics and automation sector enters the last week of September 2025 with momentum building across industrial robotics, artificial intelligence, and automation technology. According to the latest World Robotics statistics, more than 542,000 industrial robots were installed worldwide in 2024, marking a doubling of demand over the past decade. Asia accounted for nearly three-quarters of installations, with China now leading global adoption, achieving record highs and surpassing two million operational robots domestically. The total operational stock of robots worldwide has grown by nine percent year over year, reflecting ongoing digital transformation across manufacturing and logistics.

This surge continues despite reports from consultancies like Roland Berger, which note that 2025 represents a temporary plateau for automation investment. Global economic uncertainties and recalibrations in supply chains have slowed capital expenditures, yet robust fundamentals and sector-specific innovation are already priming the industry for renewed growth heading into 2026. The industrial automation market is projected to reach over 209 billion U.S. dollars by year-end, growing at a compound annual rate of more than nine percent through 2033, driven by the need for precision, cost savings, and productivity enhancement.

Among the most significant breakthroughs is the expanding capability of collaborative robots, or cobots, which seamlessly work alongside human teams. Integration of artificial intelligence systems enables predictive maintenance, real-time quality control, and hyper-flexible manufacturing— capabilities that were science fiction just a few years ago. Industry partnerships continue to drive innovation, such as Apptronik’s upcoming launch of its next-generation Apollo humanoid platform, which is set to debut before the end of the year and promises to redefine human-robot interaction in industrial spaces.

Use cases continue to multiply: smart factories are leveraging interconnected robotics and artificial intelligence to reduce downtime, optimize workflows, and meet the persistent shortage of skilled labor. Automated diagnostic tools in healthcare and intelligent food processing robots are advancing efficiency, safety, and compliance. Mergers and acquisitions remain active, as technology firms and manufacturers race to secure talent and intellectual property critical to next-generation automation.

For those in the industry, three takeaways stand out. Invest now in workforce reskilling to get ahead of the adoption curve. Explore AI-driven automation for supply chain resilience and flexibility. Monitor partnerships and product launches to stay competitive, as leading innovators are uniting engineering, machine intelligence, and cloud platforms at an unprecedented pace.

Looking forward, automation’s influence will deepen well beyond the factory floor. The convergence of robotics, machine learning, and edge computing will enable self-optimizing operations and agile production networks. Experts forecast an acceleration of these trends as economic and environmental challenges demand smarter, more adaptive solutions.

Thank you for tuning in to Robotics Industry Insider: AI and Automation News. Come back next week for more insights, and remember, this has been a Quiet Please production. For more, check out Quiet Please Dot A I.


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Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:00):
The robotics and automation sector enters the last week of
September twenty twenty five, with momentum building across industrial robotics,
artificial intelligence, and automition technology. According to the latest World
Robotic Statistics, more than five hundred and forty two thousand
industrial robots were installed worldwide in twenty twenty four, marking

(00:20):
a doubling of demand over the past decade. Asia accounted
for nearly three quarters of installations, with China now leading
global adoption, achieving record highs and surpassing two million operational
robots domestically. The total operational stock of robots worldwide has
grown by nine percent year over year, reflecting ongoing digital
transformation across manufacturing and logistics. This surge continues despite reports

(00:45):
from consultancies like Roland Berger, which note that twenty twenty
five represents a temporary plateau for automation investment. Global economic
uncertainties and recalibrations and supply chains have slowed capital expenditures,
Yet robust fundamentals and sector specific innovation are already priming
the industry for renewed growth. Heading into twenty twenty six,

(01:06):
the industrial automation market is projected to reach over two
hundred nine billion US dollars per year end, growing at
a compound annual rate of more than nine percent through
crazy cost and factory driven by the need for precision.
Among the most significant breakthroughs is the expanding capability of
collaborative robots or cobots, which seamlessly work alongside human teams.

(01:28):
Integration of artificial intelligence systems enables predictive maintenance, real time
quality control, and hyper flexible manufacturing capabilities that were science
fiction just a few years ago. Industry partnerships continue to
drive innovation, such as Aptronic's upcoming launch of its next
generation Apollo humanoid platform, which is set to debut before

(01:49):
the end of the year and promises to redefine human
robot interaction in industrial spaces. Use cases continue to multiply.
Smart factories are leveraging interconnected robotics and artificial intelligence to
reduce downtime, optimize workflows, and meet the persistent shortage of
skilled labor. Automated diagnostic tools in healthcare and intelligent food

(02:12):
processing robots are advancing efficiency, safety, and compliance. Mergers and
acquisitions remain active as technology firms and manufactures race to
secure talent and intellectual property critical to next generation automation.
For those in the industry, three takeaways stand out. Invest

(02:33):
now in workforce reskilling to get ahead of the adoption curve.
Explore AI driven automation for supply chain resilience and flexibility.
Monitor partnerships and product launches to stay competitive as leading
innovators are uniting engineering, machine intelligence, and cloud platforms at
an unprecedented pace. Looking forward, automation's influence will deepen well

(02:55):
beyond the factory floor. The convergence of robotics, machine learning,
and x edge computing will enable self optimizing operations and
agile production networks. Experts forecast and acceleration of these trends
as economic and environmental challenges demand smarter, more adaptive solutions.
Thank you for tuning in to Robotic Industry Insider, AI

(03:17):
and automation news. Come back next week for more insights,
and remember this has been a quiet please production. For
more check out quiet Please dot ai