The 3C electronics industry is a crucial pillar of global manufacturing and one of the most mature fields for industrial robot applications with the fastest technological iteration. Driven by the continuous penetration of AI technology and the extension of China’s national trade-in subsidy policy the 3C electronics market maintained a growth trend in 2025, with a market size exceeding 2 trillion RMB, a year-on-year growth of approximately 6.5%.
Market Size Trend of China's Electronic Products from 2017 to 2028 (RMB 100 Million )
Data Source: "2026 China 3C Electronics Industry Industrial Robot Market Development Report"
Against the backdrop of AI features gradually becoming standard, coupled with screen form factor innovations and government subsidy policies, the attractiveness of terminal products is steadily improving, and consumers' willingness to upgrade continues to strengthen, further stimulating the release of consumption demand. In the long run, driven by technological iteration and policy support, the electronics industry is expected to sustain its growth momentum and continuously unlock market potential.
01. 3C Electronics Robot Market Accelerates Expansion, Growth Momentum Released from Multiple Points
Given the accelerated iteration of consumer electronics and the intelligent transformation of manufacturing, the demand for high-precision and flexible robots in the 3C sector has surged. On the one hand, traditional categories such as smartphones and PCs maintain steady growth, while new categories like wearable devices and AI terminals accelerate their penetration. On the other hand, continuously rising labor costs, shortened product iteration cycles, and increased requirements for process precision have made automated transformation an industry consensus. From replacing human labor to flexible manufacturing, and now evolving towards intelligence and autonomous decision-making, the role of robots in the 3C industry is undergoing a fundamental change.
Overall Market Sales Volume Trend of Robots in China's 3C Electronics Industry from 2019 to 2028 (Units)
Data Source: "2026 China 3C Electronics Industry Industrial Robot Market Development Report"
In 2025, sales volume of industrial robots in China’s 3C electronics industry exceeded 70,000 units, representing a year-on-year growth of 13.8%, firmly maintaining its position as the world's largest single market. Behind this market performance is the joint drive of the overall recovery of the 3C industry and the accelerated release of automation demand.
Market Distribution of Segments in the 3C Electronics Industry in 2025 (Units)
Data Source: "2026 China 3C Electronics Industry Industrial Robot Market Development Report"
From the perspective of downstream industry performance, segments such as smartphones, PCs, PCBs (Printed Circuit Boards), and AI servers are accelerating automated upgrades, achieving batch introduction of industrial robots. Among them, automation investment across the entire smartphone industry chain has significantly accelerated, serving as the core driving force for industry growth. In addition:
① The automated upgrade in the PCB industry has significantly accelerated. On the one hand, the recovery in demand for traditional smartphones, PCs, and wearable devices has driven the overall growth in PCB demand. On the other hand, the rise of emerging industries such as AI servers has substantially increased the demand for high-end PCBs, thereby rapidly expanding the scale of robot introduction.
② Given the accelerated popularization of AI applications and the surging demand for server computing power, the demand for robots in the server industry continued to grow from 2024 to 2025. They are mainly applied in critical links such as material handling, assembly, and inspection, becoming an important new driving force for robot demand.
③ Affected by the accelerated overseas transfer of the notebook computer industry chain, domestic capacity has declined to some extent, and the growth rate of robot-related investments has slowed down.
02. 3C Robot Market Highly Concentrated, Leading Manufacturers Maintain Solid Landscape
From the perspective of suppliers, the market concentration in the 3C electronics industry is currently relatively high, with the top 10 robot brands accounting for approximately 80%.
Market Distribution of Top 10 Brands in the 3C Electronics Industry in 2025 (Units)
Data Source: "2026 China 3C Electronics Industry Industrial Robot Market Development Report"
In terms of manufacturer performance, the market landscape of leading manufacturers is changing. In 2025, Epson leaped to the first place in the industry, mainly benefiting from its deep layout in the Apple supply chain and its technological advantages in precision assembly, significantly enhancing its market position.
Domestic manufacturers, on the other hand, show a trend of differentiated development. Among them, Inovance remains at the forefront of the domestic camp, with its shipments mostly concentrated in the smartphone and panel industries; Estun has broken through to major clients in segments such as complete machine assembly, screen modules, and acoustics, maintaining stable shipments in the electronics field; Efort achieved significant growth in shipments in the 3C electronics industry in 2025, mainly concentrated in the smartphone and component PCB industries.
03. SCARA Steadily Maintains Mainstream Status, 6-Axis Robots Accelerate Penetration
In terms of performance across different models, in 2025, SCARA remains the mainstream model applied in the 3C electronics industry, accounting for over 48%, followed by desktop 6-axis robots. In addition, the market share of 12-35kg class 6-axis robots in the 3C electronics industry significantly increased in 2025.
Market Distribution of Robot Models in the 3C Electronics Industry in 2025 (Units)
Data Source: "2026 China 3C Electronics Industry Industrial Robot Market Development Report"
From the perspective of segmented scenarios:
● Complete Smartphones
During 2024-2025, driven by AI technology, smartphone shipments achieved rapid growth. Consumers' demand for device upgrades was effectively stimulated, prompting terminal manufacturers to increase automation investments. The robot market grew rapidly, with shipment volume year-on-year growth exceeding 30% in 2025. Meanwhile, since the automation status in the complete smartphone field is heavily influenced by Apple's investments, it is expected that in 2026 or 2027, with Apple launching a new generation of hit models, coupled with the production line iteration demand brought by technological upgrades, the robot market will maintain a high growth trend.
Data Source: "2026 China 3C Electronics Industry Industrial Robot Market Development Report"
In terms of model landscape, currently in the smartphone assembly process, many processes still rely on SCARA for automation; whereas in application scenarios with higher requirements for stroke and angle, 6-axis robots are more frequently adopted. With the future increase in flexible processing technologies for smartphones and the continuous improvement of automation rates, the application scenarios for 6-axis robots will gradually expand, and their market share is expected to further increase.
● Complete Notebook Computers
Driven by the growing demand for AI PC products, the global demand for notebook computers grew from 2024 to 2025. The demand for robot introduction achieved steady growth, with shipment volume year-on-year growth exceeding 10% in 2025. In addition, since notebook computer ODM (Original Design Manufacturer) capacity is accelerating its transfer to regions such as Thailand and Vietnam, the growth rate of automation investment in the complete machine assembly link in China is expected to gradually slow down.
Data Source: "2026 China 3C Electronics Industry Industrial Robot Market Development Report"
In terms of the proportion of each model, the front and middle stage complete machine assembly and testing links of notebook computers mainly use desktop light-load 6-axis robots. Considering both reach and load requirements, the 7kg model accounts for about 70%. SCARA is mainly applied in screw locking in the assembly stage and the packaging stage, typically using 6-7kg models. Cobots (collaborative robots) are mostly deployed in loading, unloading and inspection processes in the assembly process.
● PCB
From 2024 to 2025, driven by the increased demand in industries such as smartphones, PCs, and servers, as well as the overseas investment of PCB terminals to Southeast Asia, the demand for robot applications in this field has grown, with shipment volume year-on-year growth exceeding 30% in 2025. It is expected that as the scale of the PCB industry continues to expand and the level of automation gradually improves, robot usage will continue to rise. Meanwhile, along with the increase in high-end PCB applications used in AI servers and increasingly high production process requirements, the robot market will continue to grow in the future.
Data Source: "2026 China 3C Electronics Industry Industrial Robot Market Development Report"
In the PCB processing process, there are numerous application scenarios such as board picking and placing. As the customization level of production line layout continues to increase, the application proportion of 6-axis robots will continue to rise. Considering the weight of fixtures, stroke requirements, and the coverage capability for the weight range of PCB boards, current 6-axis robots are mainly in the 12kg, 20kg, and 25kg classes. Given the continuous evolution of AI technology, the requirements for high-end PCBs in terms of layer count, interconnect density, and operational reliability are constantly increasing, driving the growth in demand for high-multi-layer PCBs. As the weight of PCB boards becomes heavier, higher requirements are placed on the load capacity of robots, and it is expected that the application of 6-axis robots in the 25-50kg load segment will continue to increase.
Conclusion
Overall, in 2025, driven by the dual forces of demand recovery and technological upgrades, China's 3C electronics industrial robot market showed a development trend of continuous scale expansion. In the future, with accelerated product iteration, increased manufacturing complexity, and global capacity restructuring, the robot market in the 3C electronics industry will continue to evolve towards high-end, flexible, and intelligent directions. Domestic substitution and technological upgrades will become the main theme of industry development.
Meanwhile, driven by the AI wave, the entire 3C electronics industry will be reshaped. The first to benefit are the hardware fields related to infrastructure construction, including PCB boards, chip modules, optical modules, etc. As the underlying support for AI computing power, these fields will be the first to receive massive investments. Secondly, with the gradual implementation of AI technology, consumer terminal products will also usher in comprehensive upgrades. Smartphones, PCs, notebooks, and various smart hardware will be redefined by AI, creating strong demand for product iteration and thereby spawning a second wave of investment opportunities.
MIR recommends focusing on the structural growth opportunities brought by emerging high-value-added fields.
① In the foldable smartphone direction, key tracking should focus on leading enterprises with technological barriers and access to the Apple supply chain system in fields such as hinge technology, UTG (Ultra-Thin Glass), screen lamination, and MIM (Metal Injection Molding) precision structural parts;
② In the AI server field, it is recommended to focus on ODM manufacturers of NVIDIA AI servers such as Foxconn, Quanta, and Inventec. In mainland China, it is recommended to pay attention to AI server brand manufacturers such as Inspur, xFusion, Nettrix, H3C, and Huawei. In the core component link, directions such as optical modules, storage modules, cooling modules, and cabinets have high growth certainty.
③ In terms of high-end PCBs, focus can be placed on leading PCB production enterprises for AI servers;
④ In the AR/VR industry, focus can be placed on AR smart glasses terminals and their OEM/ODM links.
Correspondingly, application demand for 20–35kg payload 6-axis robots in fields such as structural parts, AI servers, and PCBs is rising. Meanwhile, the penetration rate of 12–35kg cleanroom-grade 6-axis robot models in high-end PCB production and processing is expected to further increase, which is worthy of continuous attention.
Final Remarks
MIR has long tracked the market dynamics of robots in the 3C electronics industry and recently released the "2026 China 3C Electronics Industry Robot Market Development Report". The report focuses on the development status and trends of the 3C electronics industry, the development status and future trend analysis of the robot market in the 3C electronics industry, the usage situation in the 3C electronics industry, and the competitive landscape of mainstream manufacturers. It also systematically reviews and deeply analyzes key opportunity areas in the future. The full text consists of 86 pages, and the report directory is as follows. If you need to obtain the report or further understand relevant information, please contact us through the following contact information.
Report Directory
*Log in to the MIR DATABANK Professional Manufacturing Data Platform to get more manufacturing data information, company information, and research reports! 为 https://www.mirdatabank.com