China robotics: Future of Chinese workforce

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  Quantumrun Foresight
• June 23, 2023

Insight highlights

China's position in the global robotics landscape has grown significantly, rising to the 9th rank in robot density by 2021, up from 25th five years earlier. Despite being the largest market for robotics, with 44% of global installations in 2020, China still sources a majority of its robots from abroad. In line with its plan for intelligent manufacturing, China aims to digitize 70% of domestic manufacturers by 2025, cultivate breakthroughs in core robotics technology, and become a global innovation source in robotics. The country also plans to establish three to five robotics industry zones, double its robot manufacturing intensity, and deploy robots across 52 nominated industries. 

China robotics context

According to a December 2021 report from the International Federation of Robotics, China ranked 9th in robot density—measured by the number of robot units per 10,000 employees—up from 25th five years earlier. For almost a decade, China has been the world’s largest market for robotics. In 2020 alone, it installed 140,500 robots, accounting for as much as 44 percent of all installations globally. However, most of the robots were sourced from foreign companies and countries. In 2019, China sourced 71 percent of new robots from foreign suppliers, most notably Japan, the Republic of Korea, Europe, and the United States. Most of the robots in China are used to support handling operations, electronics, welding, and automotive tasks.

As part of its plan for intelligent manufacturing, China aims to digitize 70 percent of domestic manufacturers by 2025 and wants to become a global source of innovation in robotics through breakthroughs in core robotics technology and high-end robotics products. As part of its plan to become a global leader in automation, it will establish three to five robotics industry zones and double the intensity of robot manufacturing. In addition, it will develop robots to work on tasks across 52 nominated industries, ranging from traditional fields such as automotive construction to new areas such as health and medicine.

Disruptive impact

A rapidly aging workforce may necessitate China to invest heavily in the automation industry. For instance, the rate of China’s aging is so quick that projections indicate that by 2050, China’s median age will be 48, placing close to 40 percent of the country’s population or some 330 million people over the retirement age of 65. However, new policies and plans to boost the robotics industry in China seem to be working. In 2020, the operating income of China’s robotics sector exceeded $15.7 billion USD for the first time, while in the first 11 months of 2021, the cumulative output of industrial robots in China exceeded 330,000 units, marking year-on-year growth of 49 percent. While its ambitious goals for robots and automation stem from a deepening technology rivalry with the United States, developing a national automation industry in China will likely decrease its reliance on foreign robot suppliers in the coming years.

While China has allocated massive funding and adopted aggressive policy changes to achieve automation growth by 2025, increasing supply-and-demand matching imbalances and supply chain instabilities in the global context may hinder its plans for technological development. Moreover, the Chinese government noted a lack of technology accumulation, a weak industrial foundation, and insufficient high-end supplies as potential obstacles in its plan for the growth of the robotics industry. Meanwhile, increasing government investments will likely decrease barriers to entry for private companies in the future. The robotics industry may significantly dictate the trajectory of the Chinese economy in the coming years.

Applications for China robotics

Wider implications of China’s robotics investments may include: 

• The Chinese government providing attractive compensation packages to import skilled robotics professionals and technicians and boost their domestic industry.


• More domestic Chinese robotics companies partnering with software companies to increase their potential for innovation and streamline production processes.


• The rise of robots enabling China’s healthcare industry to provide care and services to the aging populatino without the need for a massive senior care workforce.


• An increase in reshoring and friendshoring tactics by the Chinese government to safeguard its global robotics industry supply chain.


• An increase in demand for artificial intelligence software developers and technologists in the Chinese economy.


• China potentially retaining its position as the “world’s factory,” wagering that it can automate the nation’s production capacity (thereby keeping costs low) before top foreign companies transition their operations to smaller nations with younger, more affordable workforces.

Questions to consider

• Do you think China can become a world leader in automation by 2025?


• Do you think automation can help to reduce the impact of an aging and shrinking human workforce?