MasterCard CEO Ajay Banga said that “data is the new oil.” Masayoshi Son, CEO of SoftBank, says that artificial intelligence combined with data gathered by billions of sensors is bringing on an information revolution.

Manufacturers everywhere are changing – some, with government assistance – because of new technologies, new competitors, new ecosystems, and new ways of doing business. Companies that adopt these new digital-based capabilities are creating value in their businesses and becoming leaders of their industries.

The following 18 recent research reports, grouped into five categories, cover the robotics industry. All indicate double-digit compound annual growth rates (CAGR) and each makes the connection of digitalization and data to growth and economic efficiencies.

1. Industrial & collaborative robots
2. Service & surgical robotics
3. Agricultural & food handling robotics
4. Surveillance robots, drones & ROVs
5. Autonomous vehicles

Industrial & collaborative robots

1. Global industrial robot market
   Feb 2018, 123 pages, QY Research, $3,600
   QY doesn’t provide forecasts in their promotional materials.
2. Collaborative robotics market
   Dec 2017, 23 pages, ABI Research, $3,500
   To 2025, global revenue of collaborative robotics shipments is forecast to grow at a 49.8% CAGR compared to 12.1% for Industrial robots and 23.2% per cent for service robotics.
3. Global robotic injection molding machine robots
   Dec 2017, 95 pages, TechNavio, $2,500
   The global robotic injection molding machine market to grow at a CAGR of 4.94% during the period 2017-2021.
4. Global robot handling, grinding and sanding market
   Dec 2017, 93 pages, TechNavio, $2,500
   The global handling, degating, and deflashing robots market is expected to grow at a CAGR of close to 11% from 2017-2021.

Service & surgical robots

1. Robotics for enterprise markets
   Dec 2017, 127 pages, Tractica, $4,200
   Tractica forecasts that worldwide shipments of enterprise robots (ag, construction, warehousing and logistics, remote presence, customer service) will grow from 83,000 units in 2016 to 1.2 million units in 2022, at a CAGR of 57% during that period.  Revenue will increase from $5.9 billion in 2016 to $67.9 billion in 2022.
2. Global surgical robots market
   Feb 2018, BIS Research, $4,599
   Analyzes progress of Intuitive Surgical Inc., Stryker, Mazor Robotics, Hansen Medical, MedRobotics, TransEnterix, Accuray, Renishaw, Think Surgical, Synaptive Medical, Titan Medical and Smith & Nephew.
3. Global service report market
   Jan 2018, 124 pages, QY Research, $3,600
   No forecasts available.

Agricultural & food handling robotics

1. Agricultural robots market
   Dec 2017, Progressive Markets, $3,619
   The agricultural robots market is likely to garner $15.3 billion by 2025, growing at a CAGR of 20.95% during the forecast period from 2018 to 2025.
2. Agricultural robotic harvesting solutions
   Dec 2017, AlphaBrown, $2,975
   Early adopters (500+ acres and greenhouse growers) of harvesting robotics to reach $5.5bn according to study of 1,300 growers whose principle reason is to off-set the cost of labor.
3. Food robotics market
   Nov 2017, 90 pages, Grand View Research, $4,950
   The global food robotics market is anticipated to reach USD 3.35 billion by 2025.
4. Agricultural robots and drones
   Jan 2018, 213 pages, IDTechEx, $4,995
   Forecasts based on technology roadmaps, suggest that the market will grow to $35Bn by 2038 with the potential to reach higher levels- around $45Bn- in a highly accelerated technology progression and market adoption scenario. The infection point will arrive in 2024 onwards. At this point, sales will rapidly grow.
5. Global intelligent agricultural robot market
   Dec 2017, 104 pages, QY Research, $2,900
   No forecasts available.
6. China intelligent ag robot market
   Dec 2017, 99 pages, QY Research, $3,400
   No forecasts available.

Surveillance robots, drones, mobile robots & ROVs

1. Global surveillance robots market
   Sep 2017, 70 pages, TechNavio, $3,500
   Forecasts the global surveillance robots market to grow at a CAGR of 12.31% during the period 2017-2021.
2. Global market for autonomous underwater vehicles
   Oct 2017, 170 pages, Persistence Market Research, $4,900
   Focuses on maritime security coupled with greater offshore oil & gas production are the key drivers of the autonomous underwater vehicle market that is anticipated to push past $445 million by end 2022 at a CAGR of 6.1%.
3. Global autonomous mobile robots market
   Dec 2017, 193 pages, QY Research, $2,900
   The Autonomous Mobile Robots industry was $158 million in 2016 and is projected to reach $390 million by 2022, at a CAGR of 16.26% between 2016 and 2022.
4. Drone market sector report
   Sep 2017, 88 pages, Skylogic Research, $1,450
   An analysis of 2,600 drone buyers, providers and business users but no forecasts available.

5G autonomous bus at 2018 Olympics.

Autonomous vehicles

1. Autonomous trucks and buses
   Feb 2018, 93 pages, Tractica, $4,500
   Tractica forecasts that annual unit shipments will increase from approximately 343 vehicles in 2017 to 188,000 units in 2022.