Taiwan plans a $629 million funding program to create more local startups

Taiwan’s robotics industry has gotten a makeover with the official opening of a National Center and a $629 million funding plan to spin up more local robot companies on the island. 

President Lai Ching-te on Friday formally launched the National Center for AI Robotics (NCAIR), as part of its “Ten AI Initiatives Promotion Plan” to promote AI use and provide the country with the momentum needed to compete globally. The National Center will operate under Taiwan’s National Institutes of Applied Research (NIAR), according to reports. 

Taiwan wants to more robotics startups

At the opening ceremony, President Lai said that robots are a primary focus for the center. NCAIR is specifically tasked with overseeing the development, testing, and training of domestic robots and talents. 

The Taiwanese government also plans to launch a NT$20 billion (US$629 million) funding program later this year. The fund will go toward the creation of at least three new robotics startups from 2026 to 2029, according to National Applied Research Laboratories President Tsai Hung-yin. 

Taiwan recently began efforts to jump-start its robotics industry. Last year, the government announced a similar funding program, where it intended to provide NT$10 billion (US$331.25 million) of subsidies to Taiwanese robotics companies over four years. 

However, the program was mostly part of a five-year initiative to stimulate robotics development in a bid to address impending labor woes. 

Like China, Taiwan is faced with a declining and aging population, which officials fear could drag the country’s economy and its ability to care for elderly people. The government looks to robots as a promising option to shore up its workforce demand in the near future.

The priority then was to make robots for the healthcare, restaurant, and hospitality sectors within two years, according to NSTC Minister Wu Cheng-wen. With the newly launched National Center, however, home care robots are the main focus. But the center will also seek to make robots that can take up high-risk jobs, said NCAIR Director Su Wen-yu. 

Taiwan ranks among the top 10 automated economies

Taiwan already ranks among the top 10 countries by robot density, or the “number of robots used in a country to its economic size, as measured by its workforce,” according to a 2024 insight recently released by IFR. 

Also referred to as Chinese Taipei, Taiwan has a record 302 robots per 10,000 employees, the fourth-largest in Asia and ninth globally. 

Robot density graph. Source: IFR.

The Republic of Korea leads the robot density count globally with a reported 1,220 robots per 10,000 employees. Singapore follows with 818 units, Germany with 449, and Japan with 446. The United States has 307 robots per 10,000 employees, the eighth-largest in the world. 

China didn’t make the list. Despite having 2 million operational units of robots, the largest around the world, the country ranks 22nd in global robot density, with only 166 units. That’s due to its large population. “As a large country with a huge manufacturing workforce, China requires a significant operational stock […] in order to achieve high robot density,” IFR explained.

However, it’s worth noting that China’s 166 robot density represents a 17% increase YoY, the biggest growth amongst the countries. 

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