After two years of brutal price competition, China’s industrial robot industry is changing course. Output rose about 29% year on year in the first eight months of 2026, but the discounting that once drove sales is fading, replaced by price increases and a new focus on technology and services.
Market Reset & Pricing Limits
The price war reached its limit in 2025. GGII data show SCARA robots sold to big automotive and 3C customers fell to around RMB 10,000 per unit — down 50% in a year. Six-axis robots of 6kg payload dropped to just over RMB 20,000, and some collaborative robots fell below RMB 20,000. Generic Chinese six-axis robots now sell for RMB 70,000–150,000, roughly one-third the price of imported equivalents a decade ago.
Strategic Price Adjustments
Volume grew, but profits did not — and the industry has begun to reset. EFORT announced in June that it would raise painting-robot prices by 5–8% effective July 1, citing tight supply chains and higher costs. Inovance has lifted SCARA and articulated robot prices by about 5% since March. On October 26, Estun said the market is “returning to rational pricing,” a shift that will accelerate consolidation and reward disciplined players.
Technological Value Shift
Competition is moving to value. In October, FANUC unveiled AI Masterless Vision — zero teaching, zero programming, just place the workpiece — with shipments from January 2027. At WAIC 2026, Chinese developers showed 4D world models that generate compliant robot trajectories for new workpiece shapes in seconds, cutting programming time for new products by over 70%.
The takeaway: the price war is over, and the new contest is about AI, solutions, and service. Chinese industrial robot makers are moving from selling cheap hardware to selling capability.
Post time: Oct-28-2026
