The United States automotive industry continues to accelerate its adoption of industrial automation. According to preliminary results released by the International Federation of Robotics (IFR), robot installations in the U.S. car manufacturing sector increased by 10.7% in 2024, reaching 13,700 units. The growth highlights ongoing modernization efforts by automakers, even as the country trails global competitors in overall manufacturing automation.
Strong Automation Performance in Automotive Manufacturing
The U.S. automotive sector remains one of the most automated globally. The country ranks fifth worldwide in robot density within the automotive industry, tied with Japan and Germany and ahead of China. This places the U.S. among the leaders in factory-level automation within vehicle production.
“The United States has one of the most automated car industries in the world,” said Takayuki Ito, President of the International Federation of Robotics. “This is a great achievement of modernization. However, in other key areas of manufacturing automation, the U.S. lags behind its competitors.”
Heavy Reliance on Imported Robots
Despite strong adoption, the majority of industrial robots used in U.S. factories are imported, as domestic robot manufacturing remains limited. Globally, around 70% of all industrial robot installations are produced by manufacturers based in Japan, China, Germany, and South Korea.
Among these, Chinese robot manufacturers have emerged as the fastest-growing, tripling production for their domestic market between 2019 and 2023. China now ranks second globally in robot production, behind Japan, driven by a coordinated national robotics strategy.
U.S. vs. China: Automation at Scale
China has embedded robotics and automation across nearly all manufacturing sectors. In 2023, the country recorded a robot density of 470 robots per 10,000 manufacturing employees, ranking third globally and surpassing both Germany and Japan. By comparison, the United States ranks tenth, with a robot density of 295 robots per 10,000 employees.
The difference is also reflected in installation volumes. China installed approximately 280,000 industrial robots annually between 2021 and 2023, while total U.S. installations reached 34,300 units in 2024.
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