RoboBusiness 2025 Recap

Witnessing the New Wave of Robotics: Humanoids and Physical AI

If you are looking for the most important event in the robotics industry recently, you definitely cannot leave out RoboBusiness 2025. I've prepared a blog post based on my vivid experience at the event, which was more than just an exhibition—it was a glimpse into the industry's direction.

The most prominent keywords at this year's show were undoubtedly Humanoid robots and Physical AI. Let's dive in and explore how the center of gravity in the robotics industry is shifting and what the future technology trends will be!

Part 1. RoboBusiness 2025: Quality Networking at its Best

RoboBusiness this year stood out by prioritizing quality over quantity.

• Lower Customer Density, Higher Influence Density!

  • It was not the ideal event to meet large-scale customers in the Supply Chain & Logistics sector. However, the density of C-Level executives and influential decision-makers within the core robotics industry was exceptionally high. This allowed for in-depth discussions and securing high-quality networking opportunities.

• Unexpected Business Partner Discovery

  • While the initially targeted OEMs/SIs were absent, we gained valuable traction by meeting key individuals and innovative companies in entirely unexpected sectors that could offer business assistance and collaboration.

• A Forum for Deep-Dive Discussions

  • The relatively small number of exhibitors actually proved to be an advantage. It provided ample time for deep discussions with attendees, and both the booths and conference sessions were of high quality, enabling a thorough understanding of the industry's present and future.

Part 2. Core Market & Technology Trends: The Era of Humanoids & Physical AI

RoboBusiness 2025 clearly demonstrated that the focus of the robotics industry is shifting decisively from traditional industrial automation to general-purpose intelligent robots.

1. Humanoids and Physical AI Dominate the Exhibition Floor

• Focused Core Topics: More than half of the exhibition booths were occupied by Humanoid manufacturers or related component/service providers, with a significant portion of the remainder taken up by companies focusing on Physical AI, which governs the robot's intelligence.

• Key Manufacturers and Services: Numerous Humanoid robot manufacturers, including Dexmate and Kinsi, operated booths and showcased their technological capabilities. Service providers such as StarBot and Toborlife AI also actively participated, with some demonstrating applications using products from established manufacturers like Unitree.

2. The Great Transformation of the Components & Solutions Ecosystem

Existing robot component suppliers are rapidly adjusting their strategies, setting humanoids as their new key target market.

• Humanoid-Centric Positioning: Key component areas such as reducers, motors, sensors, and batteries emphatically highlighted products specifically targeting Humanoid solutions.

• The Actuator Package Trend: Motor/reducer suppliers like Maxon and HarmonicDrive are moving beyond simple component sales to expand their product scope to actuator packages. This shift is expected to significantly contribute to shortening the product development cycle for emerging robotics companies focused on Physical AI software.

• The Rising Importance of "Safety": As humanoid robots engage in Direct Contact with humans, the criticality of Functional Safety was overwhelmingly emphasized. Related specialist companies were strongly marketing their solutions based on this crucial premise.

3. Infrastructure for Accelerating Development

Innovative movements were also observed in the software and development infrastructure areas, which are vital for speeding up the development of humanoids and Physical AI.

• Simulation and Data Generation: Companies like Field AI and Haply concentrated on introducing simulation and data generation tools for humanoid development. This is emerging as a critical factor for boosting the efficiency of AI learning and validation before physical environment testing.

• Middleware Riding the Trend: Even middleware developers intended to replace ROS (Robot Operating System) (e.g., Cerulion), and other seemingly unrelated companies, demonstrated Humanoid robot demos, actively aligning themselves with the current trend.

Humanoids and AI were central themes even in the conference sessions of Big Tech companies, including the NVIDIA Keynote. This clearly substantiates that this field is rapidly becoming a mainstream technology that demands massive computing power and data infrastructure, moving beyond the sole domain of startups.

In Conclusion

RoboBusiness 2025 clearly indicated a significant transition in the robotics industry. It confirmed that the concept of the robot moving beyond a mere 'industrial machine' to a 'general-purpose intelligent companion,' heavily represented by Humanoids and Physical AI, is undeniably the current mega-trend in robotics.

However, while the industry's focus is shifting, it remains crucial to maintain a pragmatic view. This "next wave" brings undeniable excitement, but also significant technical and economic challenges that need to be addressed before true widespread commercialization.

We will continue to observe the trajectory of this evolving landscape with interest. (Spoiler Alert: Our next post will dive deeper into our assessment of the humanoid robot trend!)

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