Robots Get Brains: ABB's AI Revolution Shakes Up the Factory Floor!

This is you Robotics Industry Insider: AI & Automation News podcast.

For listeners closely following the robotics and automation sectors, the past month has delivered major headlines and signaled where the next wave of innovation is heading. At Automatica 2025 in Munich, ABB Robotics rolled out three heavy-duty industrial robot arms—the IRB 6730S, IRB 6750S, and IRB 6760—alongside the Flexley Mover autonomous mobile robot. These new machines redefine versatility in manufacturing, with shelf-mounted and press-tending robots capable of handling payloads up to 350 kilograms and servicing up to 900 parts per hour. ABB’s Flexley Mover, leveraging precise Visual SLAM navigation, can ferry up to 1,500 kilograms with millimeter accuracy, meeting the demands of increasingly automated, high-mix assembly and logistics environments. ABB’s division president, Marc Segura, emphasized that true breakthrough now lies in robots that blend advanced vision, dexterity, and artificial intelligence for seamless task switching in real-world production lines. According to TS2.Tech, this era of “Autonomous Versatile Robotics” is setting the tone for global industry advancements.

Industry-wide, the market for industrial automation continues to accelerate. Precedence Research pegs the 2025 market at 256 billion United States dollars, with forecasts reaching nearly 570 billion by 2034 as companies seek higher efficiency and lower costs. Artificial intelligence is at the core of this growth, powering new workflows that automate everything from repetitive shop-floor tasks to real-time quality control and predictive maintenance. As noted by Automation Today, June and July have seen a surge in intelligent automation platforms that merge robotic process automation with advanced artificial intelligence, with financial, healthcare, and manufacturing sectors now treating automation as a strategic imperative.

Still, not all the news is bullish. Automation.com reports an 800 million dollar downward revision in the mobile robot market forecast for 2025. Heightened tariffs from the current U.S. administration and broader economic policy uncertainty are causing manufacturers and logistics operators to delay large-scale automation investments. Disrupted supply chains and rising component costs, especially for mobile robotics, are prompting a cautious “wait-and-see” attitude in some regions. Despite these headwinds, more than 90 percent of companies adopting automation report sizable productivity gains, and operating costs see an average reduction of 22 percent.

For those with a stake in robotics, the immediate takeaway is clear: investing in highly flexible, artificial intelligence-driven automation remains the surest path to maintaining competitiveness, even as global uncertainties persist. Watching for regulatory shifts and diversifying supplier networks could help mitigate risk. Looking ahead, expect closer partnerships between robotics startups and traditional manufacturers, accelerating the deployment of collaborative robots and autonomous systems in new sectors. The trend toward intelligent, adaptable automation is setting the stage for factories and logistics environments built not just for efficiency, but for resilience and rapid change.

Thanks for tuning in. Be sure to come back next week for more insights from inside the robotics and automation industry. This has been a Quiet Please production. For more, check out Quiet Please Dot A I.


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