Almost 50 per cent of businesses not using robotics planning to start within two years, QNX report finds

May 26, 2025, Ottawa — In an effort to understand the extent to which different businesses are already using or are considering using robotics for different tasks, QNX, a division of Blackberry Limited, commissioned and released The Age of the Robot: A Global Robotics Adoption Survey.

The survey found that 50 per cent of respondents said their businesses are using robotics today, and 47 per cent of the businesses not already using robotics plan to start doing so within the next two years, meaning 71 per cent of all the businesses surveyed are either using robotics now or plan to introduce them in the near future.

The report found that 20 per cent of the decisionmakers workforce is expected to be replaced by robotics during the next decade.

There is a significant gap geographically defining companies using robotics, with 89 per cent of the companies already using robotics operating in China, compared to the second-place country, France, at 51 per cent. 45 per cent of the companies already using robotics operate in North America.

QNX did not have any data sets specific to Canada, but 100 of the 350 North American-based respondents were Canadian, a public relations representative from the organization confirmed.

Automation was the most common use for robots in companies already using them at 50 per cent, with 71 per cent of industrial automation companies surveyed reporting the use of robotics.

The top factors for deploying robotics include advancements in technology (51 per cent), improved safety (44 per cent), the need for enhanced quality or consistency (44 per cent) and cost reduction (41 per cent).

When asked about comfort working alongside robots, 21 per cent said they would be very comfortable and 49 per cent said they would be slightly comfortable, compared to 18 per cent saying they would not be very comfortable and nine per cent answering they would be not comfortable at all.

The tasks robotics are most trusted to handle include assembly line work (77 per cent), material handling (73 per cent), logistics and delivery (70 per cent), security surveillance (68 per cent) and agricultural tasks (65 per cent).

Some of the largest challenges when planning to introduce and manage robotics included the high initial cost, which 47 per cent of respondents cited, maintenance and downtime at 36 per cent and integration with existing systems and the lack of skilled labour coming from 28 per cent of respondents respectively.

When consulting workers about the use of robotics, the biggest threats included replacing jobs (37 per cent), decreasing human interaction (35 per cent) and over-reliance on technology (31 per cent). The biggest opportunities were seen as increased productivity and efficiency (37 per cent), removing dangerous or repetitive tasks (35 per cent) and improving work-life balance (31 per cent).

Some respondents expressed concern regarding government policies and regulation around AI and robotics in their country, with 19 per cent finding them somewhat inadequate and 9 per cent finding them very inadequate.

However, this uncertainty was not seen in the sectors most likely to introduce robotics, with 82 per cent of energy and utilities and 69 per cent of industrial automation respondents finding the regulations adequate.

The report is based on research conducted on behalf of QNX by One Poll in March 2025. Surveys were conducted of 1000 decisionmakers working for healthcare, automotive, industrial automation, energy and utilities and environment and agriculture businesses, based in China, France, Germany, Japan, North America (USA and Canada) and the UK, QNX reported.