Service robots and productivity: findings from a worker survey

This study examines the utilization of robots in the workplace and their productivity effects, based on a survey of Japanese workers. It presents previously unexplored facts on the use of service robots and their productivity impacts in comparison with those of industrial robots. The results indicate that the robot utilization rate was 13% in late 2025, and that service robot utilization had increased rapidly. The mean productivity effect of utilizing robots was approximately 7%. The share of tasks performed, labour-saving effect, and productivity effect are slightly larger for industrial robots than for service robots, but the differences are quantitatively small.