The industrial automation landscape is changing, and across manufacturing sectors, companies are investing in robotics to boost efficiency, ensure consistent product quality, address labour shortages, and improve health and safety
As robot manufacturers, such as Fanuc, work to make automation accessible to businesses of any size, advanced technologies such as AI are playing an increasingly significant role.
Here are three robotics trends for 2026 that are expected to advance industrial automation:
1. AI-driven robotics
AI is making robots smarter, safer, and faster to deploy, and it is reshaping industrial automation through adaptive motion control, voice-controlled operation, safety-aware human-robot collaboration, and virtual commissioning via digital twins.
A benefit of AI is its ability to accelerate deployment. AI can make it easier and quicker for companies to implement robotic systems by helping with code generation, enabling non-specialists to use natural language to programme robots to perform tasks, reducing the engineering burden on manufacturers and providing a faster return on investment. AI-enabled robots also allow existing production lines to be retrofitted without extensive modifications, accelerating the rollout of automation.
AI-driven voice controls enable robots to interpret spoken instructions and autonomously generate code to execute tasks, allowing them to work more flexibly alongside human operators and adapt in real time to changing requirements.
Additionally, AI will enhance robot safety and facilitate closer human-robot collaboration. For example, integrated vision systems allow robots to detect obstacles in their environment, which AI can then instantly recalculate motion paths in 3D space to ensure safe and efficient operation around both people and equipment.
2. Smart and scalable automation
Automation is becoming increasingly adaptable, with innovative, scalable robotic solutions that can evolve with changing business needs, enabling manufacturers to de-risk automation investments without compromising on quality or reliability.
Smaller, more agile automation systems are helping manufacturers address labour challenges, including for low-skilled or repetitive tasks such as picking, placing, and palletising. At the same time, suppliers are prioritising ease of deployment through simplified teaching methods, AI-enabled voice control and intelligent technologies such as force sensing and vision. As a result, the path to automation is faster and more accessible.
Alongside these technological advances, end-users’ attitudes towards return on investment are changing from focusing solely on the upfront purchase price to considering total cost of ownership (TCO), factoring in long-term considerations such as maintenance, downtime, and energy consumption when making purchasing decisions.
As a result, automation solutions are becoming more flexible, affordable, and user-friendly. These intelligent, scalable systems are expected to help more manufacturers overcome labour shortages, enhance product quality and consistency, and drive productivity gains.
3. Open ecosystems and partnerships
The future of industrial automation is collaborative. Open platforms and partnerships between hardware and software providers are allowing for more flexible, integrated solutions that can accelerate innovation and adoption.
Fanuc is collaborating with technology partners, including Nvidia, to bring AI solutions to market, helping unlock the potential of physical AI. A key step in this journey is Fanuc’s support for the open-source robotics platform ROS 2, which enables programming in Python. By lowering the entry barrier, developers, researchers, and companies can build AI-driven robotics applications on Fanuc’s industrial hardware.
A benefit of this openness is a smoother transition from education into industry. ROS 2 and Python are taught in colleges and universities, making these tools available on industrial equipment will enable young engineers to apply familiar skills in real-world manufacturing and automation environments.
Open platforms such as ROS 2 and Python will help to stimulate innovation, allowing companies to build, customise, and scale AI-augmented robotics solutions while utilising their own software with Fanuc’s hardware and Nvidia’s simulation infrastructure.
Fanuc is hosting ‘The Future of Precision Engineering’ for visitors to discover the automation innovations set to revolutionise UK manufacturing, held between 27 and 29 January 2026, at Fanuc UK, Ansty Park, Coventry. To register, visit: The Future of Precision Engineering 2026 - FANUC UK
