Frankfurt - The Japanese automotive industry installed a total of about 13,000 industrial robots in 2024. This is an 11% increase compared to the previous year and the highest level recorded since 2020. These are preliminary results, presented by the International Federation of Robotics (IFR).

"Japan is the world´s predominant robot manufacturing country representing 38% of global robot production," says Takayuki Ito, President of the International Federation of Robotics. "In terms of factory automation, Japan's automotive industry ranked fourth worldwide with a robot density of 1,531 robots per 10,000 employees in 2023. This is ahead of the United States and Germany only behind Slovenia, Korea and Switzerland."

The Japanese automotive industry is currently undergoing a restructuring process in order to adapt to alternative powertrains. Most car manufacturers intend to expand their range of battery and fuel cell electric vehicles. In addition, Japanese manufacturers are developing hydrogen-fueled combustion engines. This diversified portfolio will require the appropriate production technology. Car manufacturers represent approximately 25% of all robot installations on an annual basis in Japan. The electrical and electronics industry is the only sector that installs more robots. Their installations reached about 14,000 industrial robots in 2024, which reflects a 5% decrease.

"The use of robotics not only characterizes modern industrial workplaces in Japan, but also contributes to the development in everyday areas of application," says Takayuki Ito. "At the ´Future Creation Robot Week´ held during Expo 2025 in July in Osaka, visitors can experience the evolution for a society where robots support everyday life.

"Future Creation Robot Week" July 13 to 19, 2025 at Expo 2025 Osaka, Japan

* The "Future Creation Robot Week", at Expo 2025 in Osaka, offers visitors insights into the exciting world of robotics. The event showcases technologies from Japan's leading robot manufacturers in three exhibition areas: Zone 1: Future of Work with robots. Zone 2: New Skills for the Workplace of the Future and Zone 3: Future society with robots and humans collaborating: https://fcrweek.com/

Downloads

* Press release in English and German language and graph can be downloaded at:

https://ifr.org/ifr-press-releases/japans-car-industry-has-highest-robot-installations-in-five-years

About IFR

The International Federation of Robotics is the voice of the global robotics industry. IFR represents national robot associations, academia, and manufacturers of industrial and service robots from over twenty countries: www.ifr.org

The IFR Statistical Department provides data for two annual robotics studies:

World Robotics - Industrial Robots: This unique report provides global statistics on industrial robots in standardized tables and enables national comparisons to be made. It presents statistical data for around 40 countries broken down into areas of application, customer industries, types of robots and other technical and economic aspects. Production, export and import data is listed for selected countries. It also offers robot density, i.e. the number of robots per 10,000 employees, as a measure for the degree of automation.

World Robotics - Service Robots: This unique report describes marketable products, tasks, challenges and new developments by service robots application. The report includes the results of the annual IFR service robot survey on global sales of professional and consumer service robots and an industry structure analysis including a full list of all service robot producers known to the IFR. The study is jointly prepared with the robotics experts of Fraunhofer IPA, Stuttgart.

Follow IFR on LinkedIn and YouTube

Press contact

International Federation of Robotics

PRESS OFFICER

Carsten Heer

phone +49 (0) 40 822 44 284

E-Mail: press@ifr.org

Newsroom - The International Federation of Robotics

IFR International Federation of Robotics

c/o VDMA

Lyoner Strasse 18

60528 Frankfurt/Main, Germany

Phone: +49 69 6603-1697 • Fax: +49 69 6603-2697

Internet: www.ifr.org

General Secretary:

Dr. Susanne Bieller, VDMA