Rise of the robots: how surging growth in robotics is boosting power demand

Artificial intelligence (AI) is transforming far more than data centres. As robotics becomes increasingly capable, affordable and commercially viable, adoption is accelerating across manufacturing, logistics, healthcare and other industries. While attention has largely focused on the energy requirements of AI computing, the growing global robot fleet represents another important source of future electricity demand. 

Wood Mackenzie recently examined how this shift could influence global power consumption over the coming decades. Download a complimentary extract of our report using the form above, or read on for an introduction to the key themes. 

Why is global robotics adoption accelerating? 

Several long-term trends are converging to drive demand. 

Labour shortages and ageing populations are making automation increasingly attractive across many of the world's largest industrial economies. At the same time, rising labour costs and efforts to strengthen supply-chain resilience are encouraging manufacturers to invest in robotics to improve productivity and support reshoring strategies. 

Technological advances are also expanding what robots can do. Improvements in AI, computer vision and machine learning are enabling robots to perform more complex tasks in both structured and unstructured environments. Beyond traditional factory automation, robotics is finding new applications in logistics, healthcare and service industries, while interest in humanoid robots is growing rapidly as the technology becomes more mainstream. 

Together, these developments are moving robotics from a specialist manufacturing tool towards a much broader commercial technology. 

What does this mean for electricity demand? 

The expansion of robotics introduces a new layer of electricity demand alongside the rapid growth already being driven by AI data centres, electrification and industrial development. 

Unlike many hyperscaler companies, that seek low-carbon electricity for new data centres, industrial robotics is typically powered directly from the grid. As deployment expands across manufacturing and logistics, this creates an additional source of demand that utilities and policymakers will need to consider in long-term system planning. 

The ultimate impact will depend on how quickly robotics adoption scales, how energy efficient future generations of robots become and where manufacturing growth is concentrated. Markets investing heavily in automation are likely to experience the greatest effects, particularly where industrial expansion coincides with broader electrification trends. 

The next frontier: humanoid robotics 

Humanoid robots remain at an early stage of commercial deployment, but investment is accelerating as AI training capabilities improve and equipment costs begin to fall leading to the rise of embodied AI 

China has emerged as the clear leader in this segment, with strong policy support, manufacturing capability and a rapidly expanding domestic ecosystem. As adoption broadens, humanoid robots could become an increasingly important contributor to distributed electricity demand across multiple sectors. 

While many uncertainties remain around the pace and scale of deployment, robotics is becoming  a new technology factor to consider in the long-term outlook for global electricity demand. 

Learn more about robotics and future power demand 

Fill out the form on this page to download a complimentary extract from Wood Mackenzie's latest robotics report and explore how robotics could reshape electricity demand, what this means for power markets and where the biggest opportunities and challenges are likely to emerge.