Download the full white paper outlining the challenges facing the U.S. robotics industry and AUVSI’s recommendations for Congress and federal agencies to strengthen American leadership in robotics and autonomous systems.
Topics include:
- Countering the PRC’s Unfair Economic Practices
- Forging Secure Supply Chains
- Building the American Robotics Industry
- Convening a National Robotics Council to Drive Policy Recommendations and Gather Insights
White Paper Intro
For decades, the widespread use of advanced robotics systems seemed like a distant possibility — the domain of test labs and science fiction. Until recently, the same was true for artificial intelligence (AI). Today, AI assistants support people in their daily tasks, and the technology is widely used in complex data analysis. Now, the adoption of both robotics and AI is not only part of everyday life but a matter of national competitiveness.
Advances in AI technology, coupled with parallel advances in robotics technology, have brought the world to the cusp of a revolution in advanced robotics: the synthesis of AI and advanced robotic systems, sometimes described as ‘physical AI’. Where AI has generated significant gains in digital and data-based applications, physical AI holds significant promise for physical applications, with tremendous potential in both commercial and defense applications.
This technology will define the next era of economic competitiveness and is already being deployed in applications from logistics and public safety to manufacturing and natural resources. Effectively scaling these systems is a matter of U.S. economic competitiveness. In the manufacturing sector, for example, an estimated 2.1 million U.S. jobs could go unfilled by 2030, stifling U.S. economic growth. At the same time, early movers in the adoption of robotics are already showing the tremendous efficiencies this could hold for the entire U.S. economy—according to a Bank of America analysis, the use of robotics in logistics and deliveries could drive over $7 billion in savings by 2032.
This same dynamic exists across a wide range of industries, from agriculture to hospitality and the service industry. Widespread adoption of advanced robotic systems could not only help mitigate this challenge but also drive greater economic efficiency—translating into increased prosperity, higher wages, and an improved quality of life for all Americans.
Advanced robotics platforms will also define the battlefields of the future. As the Ukraine conflict has shown, robotic platforms are seeing widespread use and have already become a fact of modern warfare, filling critical roles from logistics and casualty evacuation to mine clearing and direct combat roles. It is clear that this is the future of warfare. While the United States has made strides in adopting this technology, it is critical that our nation continue to prioritize the development, scaling, and adoption of these platforms.
America’s adversaries—most notably the People’s Republic of China (PRC)—have made adoption of advanced robotics a national priority. The PRC has made the robotics race a national priority for years— with over $350 billion in planned investment made over the past decade as part of its Made in China 2025 initiative.
This decade-long, whole of society initiative includes massive subsidies and ambitious production goals, with over $20 billion in investment in AI and robotics in the past year, including a ¥1 trillion yuan (roughly $137 billion) national investment fund for startups in the in those areas, as well as smaller investment funds at the local level such as in Beijing (30 million yuan) and Shenzhen (10 billion yuan). As a result, the PRC far leads the world in adoption of advanced robotics across its economy, accounting for more than half of all newly installed industrial robots globally—276,288 units.
This wave of state-driven investment has enabled the PRC not only to adopt robotics at a quicker pace in the near-term, but to rapidly scale its domestic robotics supply chain; driving down costs and boosting global competitiveness. This is best exemplified in in the area of humanoid robotics: according to an industry study by Bank of America, the average bill of materials for a humanoid robot is expected to fall from around $35,000 in 2025 to as low as $13,000–$17,000 by 2030–2035 if most components are sourced from China. These cost reductions are made possible by the PRC’s Made in China 2025 initiative, which has massively subsidized production of critical components such as sensors, actuators, and semiconductors. As a result, Chinese industrial policy has not only expanded its domestic robotics capacity but also has given it the leverage to shape the global market in ways that disadvantage U.S. companies and threaten long-term economic and technological leadership.
On top of this, much of the PRC robotics industry is built upon the expropriation of intellectual property. It is well documented that the PRC encourages intellectual property theft as a matter of state policy; using a wide range of methods of economic espionage to accelerate domestic development—premising the PRC’s robotics industry on the theft of American innovation. The PRC’s state-sponsored intellectual property theft and significant industrial subsidies have not only accelerated its dominance in the robotics sector, but also severely undermined fair competition—highlighting the urgent need for a strategic U.S. response to protect and advance domestic innovation.
This underscores the urgent need for action to strengthen the U.S. robotics industry and its enabling supply chains; including critical minerals and other key resources as well as critical components such as sensors, batteries, and rare earth magnets. To close the gap, and enhance American competitiveness, we urge Congress and the Administration to develop and implement a comprehensive National Robotics Strategy to accelerate the design, production, and adoption of advanced robotics for our national defense and to ensure American economic and industrial competitiveness.