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That is despite vast amounts of investment. In 2021, the venture capital industry poured $17bn (£13bn) into the sector, and almost as much last year, and that is just the cash going to start-ups. Big companies have invested even more. And there should be plenty of demand.
We are all aware of often crippling labour shortages in the UK, but it is just as bad in Germany, the United States and many other developed economies.
In sectors such as hospitality and logistics companies are endlessly complaining about how they can’t find enough staff. If they could get a robot to do the work for them, then you would think they would be queuing around the block. Even so, there is not a great deal to show for all that investment. In reality, there are three big challenges.
First, the technology is typically not good enough. It is one thing to build a pitch deck that convinces venture capital firms to invest, and to mock up a prototype that completes a few simple tasks in the laboratory. It is a very different matter to produce a finished product that can be mass produced. So far there is very little sign that many of the robotics start-ups have managed to successfully get their products out of development and into the real world.
Second, the cost is often too high. To take just one example, there are quite a few robot bartenders to choose from already, and perhaps some of them even make a pretty decent Martini. But a quick web search reveals that they typically cost around £100,000 to £130,000 a piece. That is a lot.
The same is often true for robot chefs, waitresses or check-in staff. The simple fact is that robots are usually designed to replace low-level skills, which, fairly obviously, are at the cheaper end of the labour market. It is hard to justify paying £100,000 for a robot bartender when you can hire a real one for £25,000 a year.
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We’re squandering billions on a robot revolution that will not come
[ad_1]
That is despite vast amounts of investment. In 2021, the venture capital industry poured $17bn (£13bn) into the sector, and almost as much last year, and that is just the cash going to start-ups. Big companies have invested even more. And there should be plenty of demand.
We are all aware of often crippling labour shortages in the UK, but it is just as bad in Germany, the United States and many other developed economies.
In sectors such as hospitality and logistics companies are endlessly complaining about how they can’t find enough staff. If they could get a robot to do the work for them, then you would think they would be queuing around the block. Even so, there is not a great deal to show for all that investment. In reality, there are three big challenges.
First, the technology is typically not good enough. It is one thing to build a pitch deck that convinces venture capital firms to invest, and to mock up a prototype that completes a few simple tasks in the laboratory. It is a very different matter to produce a finished product that can be mass produced. So far there is very little sign that many of the robotics start-ups have managed to successfully get their products out of development and into the real world.
Second, the cost is often too high. To take just one example, there are quite a few robot bartenders to choose from already, and perhaps some of them even make a pretty decent Martini. But a quick web search reveals that they typically cost around £100,000 to £130,000 a piece. That is a lot.
The same is often true for robot chefs, waitresses or check-in staff. The simple fact is that robots are usually designed to replace low-level skills, which, fairly obviously, are at the cheaper end of the labour market. It is hard to justify paying £100,000 for a robot bartender when you can hire a real one for £25,000 a year.
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