China leads the world in developing embodied physical AI, while Japan is considered to have strengths in technologies for welfare and medical services. As competition in the robotics industry intensifies, developments in both countries are attracting attention.
China is leading the global robotics market with embodied physical AI, and the World Robot Conference and World Humanoid Robot Games were held in Beijing around the same time. The former drew approximately 300 companies and featured more than 2,000 exhibits. The latter brought together 666 teams from 16 countries and regions, with 2,056 robots competing in 51 events.
In the current physical AI landscape, Chinese companies hold the leading position in shipments, reportedly accounting for approximately 97% of humanoid robot shipments in the first half of 2026. China also accounts for a high proportion, 42%, of students worldwide majoring in AI- and robotics-related fields, according to some reports.
Japan once led the spread of robots in manufacturing as a robotics powerhouse. However, its share of global industrial robot production had fallen to 29% as of 2024, retreating from the high levels it maintained from the 1990s through 2009. At the same time, Waseda University assesses that Japan has strengths in technologies integrating hardware and software and leads in fields supporting welfare and medical services.
Looking ahead, the technology may mature in the 2030s, with the provision of services becoming increasingly realistic after 2035. At the same time, infrastructure, including social acceptance and ethical and cultural considerations, will also need to be developed. Competition between the United States and China is extending beyond technology development to include moves toward data sharing, while international frameworks for cooperation are taking shape.