Factories and other industrial users ordered 29,000 robots, 37% more than during the same period last year, valued at $1.48 billion, according to data compiled by the industry group the Association for Advancing Automation. That surpassed the previous peak set in the same time period in 2017, before the global pandemic upended economies.
"Businesses just can’t find the people they need - that’s why they’re racing to automate,” said Jeff Burnstein, president of the Association for Advancing Automation, known as A3. "It’s not that automotive is slowing down - auto is up,” said Burnstein. But other sectors - from metals to food manufacturers - are growing even faster.