EU struggles to close digital gap as Asia and the US leads in robotics
In the European Union, there are only 167 robots per 10,000 industrial sector workers, while in South Korea, this rate reaches 725 units. The European Commission, in its latest report, warns about the growing technological gap between the EU and competitors from Asia and the USA.
According to the draft report from the European Commission on the single market and competitiveness for the year 2025, accessed by Politico, the European Union significantly lags behind global leaders in digitization and the use of modern technologies.
This is particularly evident in the industrial sector, where the level of robotization remains far behind Asian competitors.
Asian dominance in industrial robotics
Statistics show enormous disparities in the level of robotization between different regions of the world. South Korea is decidedly leading with a rate of 725 robots per 10,000 workers. In China, this rate is 470 units, and in Japan, 410. For comparison, in the United States, it is 204 robots, and the EU average is just 167 units.
Among European countries, Germany performs best with a rate of 270 robots. France performs significantly worse (148 robots). It is worth noting that data for China was calculated according to a different methodology by the International Federation of Robotics, which may affect the final results.
Global distribution of robotic technology
There are currently over 3.47 million industrial robots in operation worldwide. The largest user is China, which possesses 41% of the global population of industrial robots. The European Union holds 15% of the global number of robots, while Japan holds 12%, and South Korea and the United States each hold 9%.
Particularly concerning for the European economy is the trend in the installation of new units. Asian countries are responsible for about 70% of newly installed industrial robots, with China alone accounting for 54% of global installations. Experts from the European Commission indicate that the low level of business investment in the EU and the weakening position of European industry may lead to a further deepening of the technological gap.
The technological distance between Europe and Asia may further increase due to problems in the European automotive sector, which is the main recipient of industrial robots on the Old Continent. The authors of the report emphasize that increasing investment in new technologies is crucial for improving the competitiveness of European industry.
