China’s Industrial Robots Set Sail for Global Expansion: From Borrowing to Leading

From Borrowing Boats to Taking the Helm: The Era of Chinese Industrial Robots Going Global

“We plan to make a significant push overseas by 2026.” Recently, Sun Kun, the Sales Director of the leading industrial robot company, New Era Technology (002527.SZ), shared with Jiemian News that the company has identified Southeast Asia as a key market for its international strategy, with Vietnam as its primary entry point. Prior to this, New Era’s industrial robots had already accumulated a foundation in overseas applications, particularly in the 3C electronics manufacturing sector. “The company has been ‘borrowing boats to go to sea,’ with products following the 3C and new energy supply chains abroad,” Sun stated. For instance, New Era’s SCARA and desktop six-axis robots have followed clients like Foxconn, Largan Precision, and BYD, leading to scaled applications in regional markets with annual sales surpassing 1,200 units. Now, New Era aims to take a more proactive approach in the overseas market, transitioning from being a ‘borrower’ to a ‘helmsman’. It is advancing the establishment of localized registration and operational systems in Vietnam, moving from simple market entry to in-depth localization.

This strategic shift by New Era is a microcosm of the collective movement of China’s industrial robot industry toward global expansion. Data from the General Administration of Customs indicates that in 2025, China’s industrial robot exports grew by 48.7% year-on-year, marking a shift where export volumes exceeded imports and indicating that China has become a net exporter of industrial robots for the first time. According to Zhu Shishui, General Manager of the MIR Industrial Robot Division, this structural transformation is deeply driven by the global migration of Chinese manufacturing. He analyzed for Jiemian News that the current manufacturing migration exhibits two main trends: one is the ‘reflow’ to high-end markets in Europe and the U.S., and the other involves the transfer of production capacity to emerging regions such as ASEAN, Mexico, and Eastern Europe. The downstream applications of industrial robots are highly concentrated in automotive, electronics, new energy, and photovoltaic lithium battery sectors. “As end-users accelerate their investments abroad, the associated equipment, production lines, and industrial robots will naturally follow suit. We anticipate that the next two to three years will be a peak period for the collaborative export of ‘equipment + robots’,” Zhu remarked.

In addition to passive following, there are also proactive factors driving this change. Zhu noted that the overseas expansion of industrial robot companies is related to the ‘temperature difference’ between domestic and international markets. “The domestic market is highly competitive. In overseas markets, the same effort can yield greater returns—market share is relatively low, growth potential is substantial, and there is a genuine demand for labor substitution.” Chinese industrial robots are entering a new era of global expansion. This confidence is based on years of capability accumulation. “In the past, the industrial robot market was dominated by imported brands,” Sun said. “However, after more than a decade of effort, domestic replacement rates have exceeded those of imported brands in recent years, and this trend is irreversible.” China is the world’s largest industrial robot market. According to the International Federation of Robotics (IFR) in its World Robotics Report 2025, the annual installation of industrial robots in China will reach 295,000 units in 2024, accounting for 54% of the global total. Among these, domestic suppliers have captured 57% of the domestic market share, with growth rates significantly outpacing international suppliers. “After extensive applications in the Chinese market, the performance and brand strength of domestic robot brands have caught up with foreign brands,” Sun believes.

In the overall upward trend of domestic robots, collaborative robots stand out prominently. The growth trajectory of JAKA Robotics serves as a prime example. “2019 was a critical turning point for our company,” stated Meng Xiaobo, Vice President of JAKA Robotics. Founded in 2014, the intelligent robotics firm collaborated with automotive giant Toyota that year and gradually opened the doors to overseas markets. Meng recalled that Toyota’s China division contacted and tested at least three to four top domestic collaborative robot companies to find suitable partners, “and even conducted sporadic trials in some factories.” At that time, the domestic collaborative robot industry was still in its infancy, and Toyota’s assessment of potential partners focused on the application of products in Chinese factories. Product stability and service capability were key evaluation criteria. Meng believes that since the inception of the collaborative robot industry, the technological gap between Chinese and foreign brands has narrowed significantly, and there is now virtually no gap at all. “In some performance parameters, domestic brands have even surpassed foreign ones.”

Collaborative applications of JAKA Robotics in the automotive parts sector began with evaluations and testing by Toyota’s China Technology Center. In 2020, Toyota started using JAKA’s products in some factories in China; by 2022, the company had brought JAKA’s solutions from China to its headquarters in Japan. Consequently, JAKA Robotics entered the supply chain of Toyota’s factories in Japan and other overseas locations. Between 2022 and 2024, JAKA’s overseas business is expected to grow at a compound annual growth rate of nearly 30%. Currently, JAKA has established a robust overseas presence with offices and personnel in Japan, Germany, the United States, and Malaysia, covering a wide area. In Nagoya, Japan, JAKA has built a localized factory. Meng stated that Japan has a strong manufacturing industrial chain, such as reducers and motors, and JAKA is leveraging these resources to enhance product quality. In the future, its products may utilize these advantages to penetrate the European and American markets.

The 2025 China Manufacturing Power Development Index Report indicates that by 2024, China’s manufacturing power development index will be on par with Germany and Japan, with positive growth in all components, entering the second tier of global manufacturing powers and achieving the strategic goal of the “first step” in building a manufacturing power, becoming the fourth country after the United States, Germany, and Japan to join the ranks of global manufacturing leaders. Zhu summarized the pathways for companies in overseas markets into two main strategies: one targets developed markets in Europe and the U.S., suitable for companies with strong innovative capabilities; this path has high entry barriers due to stringent product performance, compliance, and branding requirements, but once established, the value potential is substantial. The second strategy focuses on emerging markets in Southeast Asia, Mexico, and Eastern Europe, which prioritize cost-effectiveness and customer response speed, making them suitable for companies still developing their product capabilities but offering flexible services.

“Although China started later in the industrial robot sector, it possesses unique advantages,” Zhu observed. China has the most comprehensive range of manufacturing categories globally, and many specific scenarios, such as lithium batteries and photovoltaic industries, have seen automation demands generated almost entirely by the Chinese market. In these fields, foreign brands do not have deep accumulations, while domestic robots have been deeply involved in production line iterations. Zhu believes that “this is not just a market share issue, but also a matter of capability accumulation brought about by complex scenarios.” Sun further pointed out that domestic industrial robots have matured in applications within the new energy sector and are even at the forefront. Currently, only Chinese companies can provide complete sets of equipment solutions from upstream to downstream.

Data provided by Song Xiaogang, Secretary-General of the Chinese Machinery Industry Federation and Executive Vice Chairman of the Robot Branch, at the 2025 China Robot Industry Development Conference, corroborates this assessment: as of 2024, the application scope of China’s self-branded industrial robots has expanded to cover 71 major industries and 241 sub-industries in the national economy, an increase of 19 major and 98 sub-industries compared to 2020. In addition to scenario advantages, supply chain and price competitiveness are also crucial supports for domestic robots going global. For instance, in the reducer sector, which was previously monopolized by Japan’s Nabtesco and Harmonic Drive through mutual shareholding, the pricing system was rigid, making it difficult to lower prices. Chinese reducers initially had slightly lower quality, but there are now hundreds of related companies, and intense competition has led to rapid technological advancements. In recent years, the level of Chinese-made reducers has improved significantly and continues to progress. Zhu noted that similar improvements have been observed in core components like motors and cables, with a complete supply chain system supporting cost control and technological iteration. “When product performance parameters are close to or on par with those of foreign brands, the price advantages brought by the supply chain naturally become apparent,” Meng pointed out.

Zhu believes that domestic robots offer better cost performance, not simply because they are “cheaper,” but due to lower usage thresholds and maintenance costs, allowing scenarios that previously could not afford robots to become automated. Usability is another significant advantage. Zhu noted that while European and U.S. industrial robot technologies are deeply rooted, they often require engineers with at least a bachelor’s or master’s degree for debugging and maintenance. In contrast, Chinese-made industrial robots allow skilled workers with an associate degree to operate them easily. JAKA Robotics is one of the first companies in the industry to advocate the idea of “robots that everyone can use freely.” According to Meng, their robot operating system does not rely on complex programming languages like Java but instead uses a more intuitive graphical programming mode to lower the entry barrier for robot operation.

Chinese enterprises have also made significant strides in the integration of robots and AI. Zhu remarked that particularly in the application layer and the AI integration within the robots themselves, domestic companies have made notable progress. For instance, New Era is promoting the deep application of AI technology, continuously optimizing algorithms to enhance product intelligence. In December 2025, the company officially launched the SYNDA R1, a robotic product that deeply integrates AI capabilities.

However, facing the strong competition of foreign robot brands and the fierce market environment, it is not easy for Chinese industrial robots to establish a foothold overseas. “While the overseas market is a vast ocean of opportunities, navigating it is not simple,” Zhu pointed out. One significant challenge is brand trust. Currently, domestic brands hold a very low market share in the mid-to-high-end, medium-to-large load six-axis robot market, with around 200,000 units sold annually worldwide. “Many customers in Europe and the U.S. have used brands like ABB for 50 years, so their acceptance of new Chinese brands requires a long period,” Zhu explained. In the past, Chinese manufacturing was often labeled as cheap and low-quality. “However, in recent years, with the overseas expansion of high-tech products such as new energy vehicles and collaborative robots, this perception is gradually being reversed,” Meng noted.

Additionally, compliance barriers present another hurdle. Zhu explained that CE certification is only the baseline; each country has a series of strict technical and safety standards that must be met. This has become increasingly important for many companies. Since last year, several domestic companies have obtained key certifications for entering overseas markets. For instance, Inovance Technology (300124.SZ) has had its industrial robot products certified for functional safety by Germany’s TUV, while Fexi Technology has independently developed a force-controlled parallel robot, Moonlight, which has received CE and ETL certifications in the EU and North America.

Moreover, the differences in market rules add another layer of complexity. Zhu has observed that price is not a decisive factor overseas. The procurement decision-making chain is longer and more decentralized—often led by technical engineers with less involvement from management. This means that Chinese companies need to reach more decision-making nodes to establish trust over a more extended period. JAKA experienced this firsthand when expanding into Japan, as Meng explained that, unlike in China where they could directly engage with major clients, in Japan transactions must go through trading companies or similar intermediaries, and Japanese clients tend to be more cautious, leading to longer validation and testing cycles for products.

Despite these challenges, the wave of Chinese industrial robots going abroad shows no signs of slowing. This trend is also supported by capital movements. Recently, Estun Automation (002747.SZ) passed the listing hearing for the Hong Kong Stock Exchange, aiming to “deepen its global strategic layout, accelerate overseas business development, and enhance its international brand image and core competitiveness.” Another A-share industrial robot company, Topstar (300607.SZ), is also accelerating its layout in the Hong Kong market, stating that it will continue to push for global expansion and actively seize international market opportunities. “This has become a clear industry consensus,” Zhu believes, noting that the concentrated move of companies to list in Hong Kong is primarily for financing and international expansion. “Chinese industrial robots have validated their cost, responsiveness, and customization capabilities in the domestic market; the industrial chain has transitioned from non-existence to completeness.” In Zhu’s view, the next market growth will either come from breakthroughs in high-value-added scenarios in the domestic market, such as automotive spot welding and high-precision handling, or from further global expansion to compete with foreign brands.