Labor for 2 dollars per hour: Humanoid robots as the next trillion-dollar-industry

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• New Roland Berger study forecasts a long-term market volume of several trillion USD.
• Multi-billion dollar opportunity for industry, suppliers, and technology providers.
• Europe needs its own industrial structures to benefit from the advantages.

Munich, April 2026: Humanoid robots are on the verge of moving from the prototype phase to industrial-scale rollout. The current Roland Berger study Humanoid Robots 2026 – The Convergence Moment for a New Market shows that advances in AI and robotics hardware could enable humanoid systems to operate at running costs of around two US dollars per hour in the future. This would make them a decisive lever in high-wage countries such as Germany to safeguard competitiveness, foster new industries, and counter the shortage of skilled labor.

According to the study, robotics manufacturers could reach revenues of USD 300 billion by 2035; in more optimistic scenarios, up to USD 750 billion. In the long term, the market could reach up to USD 4 trillion—potentially achieving a market size comparable to the automotive industry.

“We are currently at the point where technological feasibility is meeting economic necessity. The key question is no longer if humanoid robots are realistic, but how quickly they will scale,” says Thomas Kirschstein, Partner at Roland Berger.

Multi-billion opportunity along the value chain
Humanoid robots are expected to create new sales markets far beyond the robot itself: from from motors, mechanics, and sensors to electronics and production equipment – a complex value chain that, in large parts, builds on existing industrial capabilities.

Before humanoid robots can take on fully autonomous production tasks, the technology must progress further. While the hardware is already at an advanced stage, software, supply chains, and regulations are maturing gradually. Benefits will initially emerge in clearly defined, repetitive applications such as unpacking or transporting items. Only as software maturity increases will the range of tasks expand.

Issues such as durability as well as safety and liability will also determine the speed and breadth of industrialization. The complex systems must withstand continuous operation in sometimes harsh production environments.

Existing safety standards are designed for traditional, fenced-off automation. Humanoid robots, by contrast, work dynamically and move in the same spaces as people. This requires new testing and certification approaches as well as harmonized legislation.

Europe needs its own value chain
Europe does have a strong industrial base, especially in automotive manufacturing, mechanical engineering, and automation, yet investments, volumes, and startup ecosystems are still trailing the US and China. According to the study, the continent has not yet lost ground, but it must act decisively.

Thomas Kirschstein, Partner at Roland Berger, says: "Europe has the technological capabilities to benefit from humanoid robots in the future. What is missing is the determination to invest in its own value chains and to scale quickly."

With operating costs of around two US dollars per hour, humanoid robots open up the possibility of bringing labor-intensive production back to Europe in an economically viable way. The prerequisite is a European value creation structure: more scaling, more investment, and close integration between industry, suppliers, and technology providers. If this does not succeed, Europe risks becoming dependent on foreign technologies; even though Europe already has more than 20 startups for humanoid robots today. Without its own industrial value chain that can keep pace with the US and China, a significant share of the economic effects would be generated outside Europe, as can already be observed today in parts of the AI industry.

About the study
The study “Humanoid Robots 2026 – The Convergence Moment for a New Market” analyzes market potential, the economics of humanoid robotics, and the technological and regulatory prerequisites for scaling. It is based on market interviews, modeling, and Roland Berger’s internal data. It also examines regional ecosystems and the first industrial fields of application.