Europe installed 23,000 robots. And China? They did it faster and cheaper

In partnership with

Europe installed 23,000 robots in the automotive industry. That’s a solid number. The second-best in the last five years. You can give yourself a high five, post about it on LinkedIn, maybe even add it to your innovation strategy.

But when you zoom out, the picture changes. In the same time frame, China installed five times more. And we’re not talking about some distant market. We’re talking about competition that’s already rolling into Europe with electric cars and ready to rewrite the rules.

Don’t get me wrong. I believe in robotics. I love what I do. I’ve been in this industry for years and I’ve seen how robots can transform a company, a process, a team. But what worries me is our attitude.

In Europe, we treat robot installations like we’re raising monuments. Every robot is a project. A strategy. Meetings. Risk assessments. Presentations. And finally, celebration. Which is great, except the world no longer waits for ceremonies. China installs thousands of robots and just keeps going.

Find out why 1M+ professionals read Superhuman AI daily.

In 2 years you will be working for AI

Or an AI will be working for you

Here's how you can future-proof yourself:

1. Join the Superhuman AI newsletter – read by 1M+ people at top companies

2. Master AI tools, tutorials, and news in just 3 minutes a day

3. Become 10X more productive using AI

Join 1,000,000+ pros at companies like Google, Meta, and Amazon that are using AI to get ahead.

Sign up and start learning AI

I get the feeling we’re still afraid. Afraid it’s too expensive. Too complicated. That people will lose their jobs. That it might go wrong. But ironically, it’s not robots we should be afraid of. It’s our fear of robots that’s the real threat.

China doesn’t ask if it’s worth it. They just do it. Fast. Massive scale. Simple decisions. No nostalgia. As a result, they’re not just selling more cars. They’re showing us that production can be faster, cheaper and just as good. And yeah, that stings a little. Because weren’t we supposed to lead the way?

And again this isn’t an argument against caution. But today caution might just be the new brake pedal. If we don’t start acting boldly if we don’t shift our mindset from "should we?" to "how fast?" we’ll wake up in a world where robots are everywhere just not ours.

So let me say it clearly we need to stop being afraid of robots. They’re not the end of the world and they’re not magic either. They’re tools. Like a hammer. You can build something with it or leave it on the shelf wondering if it might break.

If we want to stay in the game we have to invest in robots but more than that we have to stop treating them like trophies. We have to make them normal. Everyday. In every factory. And do it fast.

It’s not about chasing China.

It’s about finally moving forward and not being afraid of speed.

Cheers,

Jacek !