Social Robots Market - Forecasts from 2025 to 2030

Social robots, designed as companion robots, assist with tasks such as lifting, companionship, and simulating emotions, enhancing daily life across various sectors. Their applications include healthcare, education, retail, entertainment, IT, communication, and households, with healthcare and household sectors expected to dominate the market during the forecast period.

Market Drivers

Healthcare and Caregiving Applications

Social robots are increasingly integral to healthcare, particularly in addressing the needs of aging populations and supporting mental health for individuals with special needs. In healthcare, these robots assist with nursing tasks and cater to patients’ emotional well-being. Japan leads in adopting social robots for healthcare, driven by its rapidly aging population, which is projected to constitute 36.7% of the population (aged 65 and above) by 2045, with a declining population rate of 1.4% annually. The limited workforce has spurred demand for robots like Paro, Telenoid, and Ugo, which support nursing and caregiving. South Korea is also emerging as a key market, with forecasts indicating that its aged population will reach 37% by 2045. The preference for automation over immigration in these regions further strengthens market stability.

Rising Automation

The surge in automation across industries is a key driver of the social robots market. The growing adoption of robots in retail and entertainment enhances customer experiences by guiding shoppers and managing inventory. For instance, retail giants in the US have deployed robots like Tally, developed by Simbe Robotics, for efficient inventory management. In IT and communication, social robots address customer queries, improving service delivery. The International Federation of Robotics highlights the global increase in robot adoption, with Asia, particularly Japan, South Korea, and China, leading the market. These countries, alongside the US and Germany, account for a significant share of the global robotics supply, with social robots forming a notable portion.

Geographical Outlook

The Asia-Pacific region, particularly Japan and South Korea, is poised to dominate the global social robots market by 2026, driven by extensive adoption in healthcare and education. Japan’s investment of USD 100 million in 2018 for nursing robot development underscores its leadership in healthcare robotics. South Korea’s focus on automation, with a USD 250 million investment announced in 2020 for healthcare, disaster response, and rehabilitation, further bolsters market growth. North America also holds a significant market share, driven by retail and IT applications. However, concerns about job displacement due to automation pose challenges to market expansion.

The social robots market is on a steep growth trajectory, fueled by the rising demand for automation and the need to address aging populations and specialized care. Japan and South Korea lead in healthcare applications, while retail and IT sectors globally adopt robots for enhanced efficiency. Despite challenges from automation-related job concerns, the market’s robust growth prospects make it a critical area for industry focus through 2030.

Key Benefits of this Report:

• Insightful Analysis: Gain detailed market insights covering major as well as emerging geographical regions, focusing on customer segments, government policies and socio-economic factors, consumer preferences, industry verticals, and other sub-segments.
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• Market Drivers & Future Trends: Explore the dynamic factors and pivotal market trends and how they will shape future market developments.
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Report Coverage:

• Historical data from 2022 to 2024 & forecast data from 2025 to 2030
• Growth Opportunities, Challenges, Supply Chain Outlook, Regulatory Framework, and Trend Analysis
• Competitive Positioning, Strategies, and Market Share Analysis
• Revenue Growth and Forecast Assessment of segments and regions including countries
• Company Profiling (Strategies, Products, Financial Information, and Key Developments among others)

Social Robots Market Segmentation:

• By Component
  • Hardware
  • Software
  • Services
• By Product Type
  • Companion Robots
  • Service Robots
  • Education Robots
  • Others
• By Technology
  • Artificial Intelligence (AI)
  • Natural Language Processing
  • Machine Learning
  • Computer Vision
  • Others
• By End-User
  • Medical & Healthcare
  • Education
  • Retail
  • Media & Entertainment
  • Others
• By Geography
  • North America
    • USA
    • Canada
    • Mexico
  • South America
    • Brazil
    • Argentina
    • Others
  • Europe
    • Germany
    • France
    • United Kingdom
    • Italy
    • Spain
    • Others
  • Middle East and Africa
    • Saudi Arabia
    • UAE
    • Israel
    • Others
  • Asia-Pacific
    • China
    • India
    • Japan
    • South Korea
    • Indonesia
    • Thailand
    • Taiwan
    • Others