According to a Reuters report citing statistics from the International Federation of Robotics (IFR), global sales of humanoid robots for industrial and professional service applications totaled approximately 7,000 units last year (2025). This preliminary figure stands in stark contrast to market expectations of rapid growth for humanoid robots in the coming years.
The Frankfurt-based IFR defines humanoid robots as machines that resemble humans in appearance and are capable of operating autonomously in human environments, though they do not necessarily require legs.
IFR Secretary General Susanne Bieller stated that the number of humanoid robots still accounts for only a “small fraction” of the global total robot population.
In comparison, approximately 542,000 traditional industrial robots were installed worldwide in 2024, while another 199,000 service robots—designed for tasks such as transport, hospitality, and cleaning—were sold that same year.
Comprehensive data on industrial and service robots for 2025 will be released on September 24.
Bieller noted that many of the humanoid robots sold in 2025 were not actually deployed for production work; instead, they were purchased by research institutions or companies to gather data and refine AI models. While automakers are key early adopters, the technology remains in the testing phase, with individual factories typically employing robots in the single digits, or occasionally in the low double digits.