Humanoid robots: China builds them, but Germany could supply the joints and hands

Europe has so far built few humanoid robots, yet could profit from each one. German car part suppliers may play a key role in joints, says a Fraunhofer study.

At first glance, humanoid robots look like a field dominated by the big tech corporations: artificial intelligence, cameras, sensors, software.

But beneath their casing lies a great deal of traditional industry.

Every leg, every arm and every hand contains motors, gearboxes, bearings and sensors — components European companies have been producing for decades.

German research is still at the starting point in the race to develop humanoid robots, but industrial suppliers are already far ahead when it comes to specialised parts.

Researchers are now asking whether Europe even needs to build humanoid robots itself in order to benefit from a potential boom in the technology.

Could conventional industrial companies simply become suppliers to a new robotics sector? Or will this value creation also relocate to China or the United States?

China currently dominates deliveries by a clear margin and has overtaken the United States. Europe so far plays hardly any role in finished machines. Yet German companies could still profit from their potential march to victory.

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