Industrial Robots: Russia's Need to Catch Up Is Growing
According to the Ministry of Industry and Trade, the number of industrial robots in Russia grew by about 11% last year to 21,857 units. However, to meet the government’s ambitious targets, an additional 80,000 industrial robots would need to be installed by 2030. At this rate, Russia will fall short of its goal, notes Roman Rufow of the auditing firm TeDo. According to his calculations, only 2,100 industrial robots were installed in Russian companies last year. However, an average of 16,000 units per year would be necessary.
Russia’s robot density for 2025 remained unchanged at 29 robots per 10,000 employees. To enable Russia to catch up with the top 25 nations with the highest robot density, a presidential decree calls for a robot density of 145 per 10,000 employees by the end of the decade. This would require a robot fleet of more than 100,000 units. Experts point out that robotization is advancing at an ever-faster pace worldwide and that Russia’s targets will be outdated by 2030.
South Korea, the current leader, recently had a robot density of 1,220 per 10,000 workers, followed by Singapore (818), Germany (449), Japan (446), and China (392). Fifth through tenth place go to Sweden (377), Denmark (329), Slovenia (315), the United States (307), and Taiwan (302).
Modest Russian Market Volume
The Russian robotics market totaled 7.86 billion rubles in 2025, equivalent to 78.1 million euros. This represents a 14% increase over the previous year. According to forecasts by the Development Center for Industrial Robotics at Innopolis University in Kazan, the capital of Tatarstan, the market volume is expected to grow by 14% annually through 2030, reaching 15.14 billion rubles (150.5 million euros). A positive scenario projected by the researchers anticipates an annual growth rate of 38%, reaching a total of 48 billion rubles (477.1 million euros). The U.S. company Robotics Center of Silicon Valley estimates that the global robotics market will reach the $38 billion mark this year, representing a 34% increase over the previous year. China’s market share alone amounts to $14.2 billion. Germany contributes $2.8 billion.
Competition is pulling ahead
At the 2026 World Robot Championship in Beijing, a humanoid robot broke the world record set by sports legend Usain Bolt in a 100-meter sprint. It was a symbol of China’s ambition to seize the leading position in robotization. The country is driving the automation of its industry at a record pace and, on a quarterly basis, deploys more new robots than most countries do in an entire year. According to estimates by the U.S. company Robotics Center of Silicon Valley, the People’s Republic accounted for more than 70% of global robot installations in 2025. According to preliminary calculations by the International Federation of Robotics (IFR), the country has approximately 276,000 industrial robots in operation.
Japan and the U.S. follow far behind in second and third place, with 46,000 and 35,000 industrial robots installed, respectively. Germany is the European leader and, according to the World Robotics Report, installed 27,000 robots in 2024. Germany’s robot automation total stands at 278,900 units, accounting for 40% of all factory robots in the EU.
No Growth Without Robots?
The Russian government has high hopes for robotization and is placing automation at the center of future growth models. Particularly in sectors such as mechanical engineering, electronics, logistics, the food industry, as well as the defense and heavy industries, robots are expected to ensure higher quality standards and increase production volumes. Historically, the automotive industry, metal processing, and electronics have been key drivers of industrial robot adoption, says Nikolai Chernezov of the auditing firm Kept, formerly part of the international industry leader KPMG. However, these economic sectors contribute less to Russia’s gross domestic product than leading robotics industries do. “In Russia, these sectors accounted for 14% of GDP over the past three years, whereas in China the figure was 25% and in South Korea 36%,” says Chernezov. This prevents the Russian economy from widely automating production, the expert concludes.
Experts point, among other things, to a shortage of specialists, dependence on imports for key components, and a lack of in-house development. Nikolai Smirnov, director of the Development Center for Industrial Robotics at Innopolis University in Russia, estimates that the degree of localization in Russian robotics currently ranges from 30% to 50%.
Excessive Costs
Experts see high costs as another reason for the slow pace of robotization in Russia. A study by the consulting firm TeDo found that robot deployment is too costly for 89% of the companies surveyed. 41% of survey participants cited a lack of expertise and a shortage of specialists as obstacles. 33% of respondents have concerns about the return on investment.
The low number of robots in Russia is due to a pause in investment and companies’ revision of their long-term production plans, says Nikolai Chernezov of the auditing firm Kept. Furthermore, companies know too little about the possibilities for robotization, the consultant adds. “There is a persistent misconception that robots are complex, expensive, and intended only for large companies,” explains Chernetov.
Sources: Kommersant 1, 2, RBC (all RU), Robotics Center of Silicon Valley 1, 2, 3, IFR (all EN), German Robotics Association, Handelsblatt
Source: German-Russian Chamber of Foreign Trade, Industrial Robots: Russia’s Need to Catch Up Is Growing, September 4, 2026.
This article was prepared for the German-Russian Chamber of Foreign Trade.