China's Robot Army Is Coming Along Nicely

China now leads the world in factory robots, outpacing every other country combined, according to a new report from the International Federation of Robotics. More than 2 million robots toiled in Chinese factories in 2024, with nearly 300,000 newly installed—far surpassing the 34,000 added in the United States, reports the New York Times. Japan, the previous front-runner, is also trailing, with just 44,000 installed last year. This surge is no accident. Backed by aggressive government policies, cheap loans, and national strategies like the "Made in China 2025" initiative to focus on domestic manufacturing, Chinese firms have scaled up both the use and production of robots.

Almost 60% of the robots installed in China last year were homegrown, upending the trend of relying on imports. The apparent payoff: China's factories now churn out nearly one-third of the world's manufactured goods—more than the US, Japan, Germany, South Korea, and Britain put together. Earlier this year, the Times reported that China was using its bot workers to compensate for the current tariffs war. "A machine can work 24 hours," a Guangzhou workshop owner told the outlet.

Some of them can even work in the dark, since they don't always need to "see" to accomplish their tasks, per USA Today. While China's tech ecosystem has benefited from heavy state investment, especially in robotics and artificial intelligence, it still lags behind international competitors in manufacturing some high-end-robot parts, such as sensors and semiconductors. For top-tier humanoid robots, most components still come from abroad. However, for industrial robots—the machines that weld and lift—China has distinct advantages, including a deep bench of skilled workers and a robust AI sector focused on optimizing factory operations. Pay for robot installation experts is on the rise, with demand sometimes outpacing supply.