Who Actually Makes Money From the Robot Boom?

About this episode

The robot boom is attracting big money. But who actually gets paid when the machines get to work? In this Mere Mortals Robotics episode, I explore the robotics money map: the market’s size, the major players, and the economics that could determine what gets deployed between now and 2029. From NVIDIA, Alphabet and Amazon to Figure, Unitree and Boston Dynamics, we look beyond humanoid headlines to industrial robots, warehouse automation, autonomous machinery and robots working in our homes.This is me learning in public, testing ideas and trying to understand where robotics becomes genuinely useful. Recorded in September 2026. Company valuations and market figures reflect the discussion at that time. Cost examples and deployment scenarios are illustrative assumptions, rather than company quotes or guaranteed forecasts. CHAPTERS 00:00 Introduction: mapping the robot economy 01:36 Industrial robots versus humanoids 03:13 What counts as the robotics market? 04:08 Factory robot growth towards 2029 05:42 China’s role in robot adoption 07:17 Service robots and transport 08:09 Automation and global supply chains 09:31 Big tech and the robotics money map 11:06 Specialists, humanoids and a