Amid the rapid global growth of the smart robotics market, Premier Cho Jung-tai announced at the Executive Yuan meeting on the 15th the approval of the "AI Smart Robotics Plan." Over the next four years, the National Science and Technology Council (NSTC) will allocate a budget of NT$10 billion, with an additional NT$10 billion from the National Development Fund to support local startups. The goal is to launch smart robots within two years of the plan’s implementation, with priority given to applications in healthcare, caregiving, and food service, aiming to alleviate labor shortages in these industries.

Premier Cho stated, "Taiwan’s smart robotics industry is still in its infancy. We must catch up swiftly and accelerate the practical application of robotics."

Under the approved plan, the NSTC will dedicate NT$10 billion over four years, while the National Development Fund will allocate another NT$10 billion to nurture domestic startup brands and attract private investment. The objective is to increase the domestic professional service robot market value from NT$4 billion to NT$50 billion within five years.

Yao-Win Peter Hong, Director of Engineering at NSTC, explained, "The Shalun Robotics Center will connect upstream fundamental research, while the Liujia Robotics Center will assist downstream industrial application development."

NSTC Chairman Cheng-Wen Wu emphasized, "Taiwan cannot focus solely on hardware; we must develop AI. Our emphasis is on system integration, aiming to create systems that directly serve human society and solve various problems."

NSTC indicated that smart robots could be launched within two years of the plan’s start, focusing on medical, caregiving, and food service applications to ease workforce shortages. Industry experts believe that service robots require integration of mechanics, electronics, and AI computing power—capabilities Taiwan possesses.

Phison Electronics CEO Pan Chien-cheng noted, "Because Taiwan’s domestic market is small, opportunities are limited. Therefore, we must pursue more refined directions, with healthcare possibly being a viable area."

Ansforce CEO Jefferey Chiu observed, "Taiwan has traditionally focused on component manufacturing and design but is far behind in integrating full humanoid robots. The government’s recognition and increased funding at this stage are very positive for the industry’s development."

Government investment in the AI robotics sector is viewed optimistically by experts, especially as a recent TSMC technology forum highlighted that the global AI robotics market is expected to surpass US$35 billion by 2030. Following generative AI and agent AI, “physical AI” is anticipated to be the next major trend.

Resource: 政院拍板AI機器人計畫 優先投入醫療照護等領域