On October 20, the National Bureau of Statistics reported that in the first three quarters, the production of industrial robots and service robots in China increased by 29.8% and 16.3% year-on-year, respectively. The effective development of new production capacity has energized independent innovation and driven industrial upgrading, becoming the core force in transforming the manufacturing industry towards high-end, intelligent, and green practices. Recently, there has been a surge in orders, technological breakthroughs, and positive performance reports from companies in the industrial robot supply chain. Industry experts noted that there are discrepancies in the competitive landscape across various segments of the domestic industrial robot market. To elevate the industry to mid-to-high-end levels, breakthroughs in heavy-duty industrial robots are still necessary.
With innovation moving towards industrialization, a spokesperson from the National Bureau of Statistics stated that in 2023, new industries and products have rapidly developed, and new business models are expanding swiftly. The integration of technology and industry for innovation is deepening continually, leading to more innovations transitioning from laboratories to production lines, thus turning innovative potential into economic momentum. Data shows that in the first three quarters of 2025, the added value of high-tech manufacturing in China grew by 9.6% year-on-year, with production of industrial robots, service robots, and high-speed train sets increasing by 29.8%, 16.3%, and 8.6%, respectively. The significant growth in industrial robot production reflects the ongoing demand for intelligent transformation in China's manufacturing industry.
According to a report from Guotai Junan Securities, at least 22 companies have established wholly-owned or jointly-funded subsidiaries related to industrial robots since 2024, with over 24 new industrial robot companies formed. Amidst strong market demand, leading industrial robot firms have seen a substantial rise in order volumes. Relevant companies are actively building competitive advantages through technological collaboration and expanding application scenarios, accelerating the industrialization of innovative outcomes. For instance, Effort's industrial robot shipments in the first half of 2025 increased nearly 20% year-on-year, with a more than 50% rise in robotics used for electronic manufacturing applications and over a 40% increase in automotive applications.
A representative from Effort indicated that significant breakthroughs were achieved in the automotive and automotive parts sector, with robots for spot welding, arc welding, painting, and general use receiving bulk orders from major domestic new energy vehicle manufacturers. Notably, Effort's heavy-load welding robots successfully applied aluminum spot welding and roller edge processes on a white body welding production line for the first time, showcasing advancements in product capability. Currently, Effort has established in-depth collaborations with over ten well-known automotive brands, including BYD, Changan, GAC, Li Auto, Xiaopeng, and Seres.
Furthermore, New Times Technology reported a 25.7% year-on-year increase in the shipment of industrial robots in the first quarter and a 52.4% increase in the second quarter. In the first half of 2025, the company launched high-speed SCARA and clean SCARA robots, experiencing growth in general industrial fields such as 3C electronics, semiconductors, digital lithium batteries, and warehousing logistics. In the semiconductor robotics sector, which is crucial to New Times' strategic business, the company has successfully developed a product matrix for semiconductor wafer transfer robots over three years of continuous investment. These products cover front and back-end semiconductor processes, including heat treatment, cleaning, etching, and thin film, and have been applied in the production of simulated chips, power chips, sensor chips, and LED chips.
Emerging industries are flourishing, pushing the sector toward high-end, intelligent, and green transformation. China's position in the global value chain for industrial robots has significantly improved, and companies within the industrial robot supply chain have shown remarkable performance growth. According to Wang Jun, Deputy Director of the General Administration of Customs, China’s exports of industrial robots rose by 54.9% in the first three quarters. With the development of new productive capacities, the structure of export products is constantly being optimized, and the application scenarios for robots are becoming more diverse, gaining popularity in international markets. A representative from Estun announced that by the first half of 2025, the company had established 75 service outlets worldwide, with overseas business revenue reaching 749 million yuan. The company is actively expanding its global operations by forming an international management team and intensifying its ventures into European, American, and Southeast Asian markets, while also seizing overseas opportunities from leading domestic clients in sectors such as new energy vehicles and lithium battery equipment.
In terms of precision progressive stamping molds and downstream precision structural component manufacturing, Jingyu Technology reported an estimated net profit attributable to shareholders of 400-420 million yuan for the first three quarters, reflecting a year-on-year increase of 132%-143.6%. Additionally, 3D vision perception product company Orbbec revealed that it expects to achieve revenue of 714 million yuan in the first three quarters, a year-on-year growth of 103.50%. The company noted that sustained improvements in the upstream 3D vision perception industry chain and the rapid expansion of downstream application scenarios have led to substantial growth across its robot-related business segments. As a primary link in "perception-decision-execution" processes of various robots and the digital reproduction of the physical world, the company’s 3D vision perception technology aids AI hardware in accelerating large-scale commercial deployment.
Industry experts highlight that the current development of China's industrial robot sector has entered deeper waters, with variances in competitive dynamics among different market segments. According to the "2025 China Industrial Robot Industry White Paper", industrial robots are classified into four categories based on mechanical structure and function: six-axis robots, horizontal multi-joint robots, parallel robots, and collaborative robots, the latter of which is projected to be the fastest-growing segment in the coming years. Guotai Junan Securities reports that traditional collaborative robots primarily engage in handling and are involved mainly in non-core production stages. Since 2023, some domestic brands have accelerated the upgrade of collaborative robots, introducing solutions applicable for complex industrial processes such as assembly, welding, and palletizing, successfully overcoming technological barriers. Currently, the output of process-oriented collaborative robots has surpassed that of handling-type robots, and the continuous expansion of downstream application scenarios is driving sustained growth in collaborative robots. In terms of six-axis robots, domestic light-load robots have achieved global reach and formed substantial competitive advantages. However, experts point out that domestically manufactured high-value heavy-load robots still face challenges in global market competition. Although many startup companies focus on the relatively low-tech, high-margin collaborative robot sector, breakthroughs in heavy-duty industrial robots are essential for advancing the domestic industrial robot market into higher tiers.
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