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North American Robot Orders Rise 24.8% in Q3 2026 as Semiconductor and Electronics Demand Nearly Doubles

North American companies ordered 10,989 robots worth $723.5 million in Q3 2026, the strongest single quarter of the year, with semiconductor and electronics manufacturers posting the fastest growth of any tracked sector.

Mainstay Communications Team · November 9, 2026 · 3 min read

North American Robot Orders Rise 24.8% in Q3 2026 as Semiconductor and Electronics Demand Nearly Doubles

In brief

The Association for Advancing Automation reported a 24.8% year-over-year increase in North American robot orders for Q3 2026, with total value climbing 26.1% to $723.5 million. Semiconductor and electronics manufacturers led all sectors with a 97.6% jump in orders, fueled by capital flowing into U.S. chip manufacturing capacity. Automotive component suppliers posted 90.4% growth, while food and consumer goods was the lone major sector to contract, down 23.7%. Nine-month 2026 totals now stand at 28,984 units and $1.89 billion, up 9.6% on volume and 13.3% on value versus the same stretch of 2025.

The Quarter in Numbers

A3 (Association for Advancing Automation) reported that North American companies ordered 10,989 robots in Q3 2026, valued at $723.5 million. That's a 24.8% increase in units and a 26.1% increase in value compared to Q3 2025, and the best single-quarter reading of the year by both measures.

Through the first nine months of 2026, North American companies ordered 28,984 robots worth roughly $1.89 billion. On a year-to-date basis, volume is up 9.6% and value is up 13.3% versus the same period in 2025.

Semiconductor Demand Pulls to the Front

Semiconductors and electronics/photonics posted 97.6% year-over-year growth in Q3, the highest rate of any industry tracked by A3. Continued investment in U.S. semiconductor manufacturing, along with strong demand for electronics that support AI and other applications, has pushed capital equipment orders well ahead of prior-year levels.

Life sciences, pharma, and biomedical companies added 38.7%. Plastics and rubber grew 67.7%, and metals advanced 37.0%.

Collaborative robots are a large part of the semiconductor story. Through the first nine months of 2026, cobots comprised 36.9% of semiconductor and electronics orders, a share that reflects how automation in those facilities increasingly involves human-robot work zones rather than fully isolated cells.

Automotive: Recovery in Components, Still Catching Up at OEM

Automotive component suppliers posted 90.4% growth in Q3, a sharp rebound that reflects supply-chain investment running ahead of the OEM tier. Automotive OEM orders turned positive for the first time in 2026, growing 7.5% year over year.

The OEM segment's nine-month picture is more constrained. Through September, automotive OEM orders remain 17% below prior-year levels, carrying the weight of a steep first-half contraction. The Q3 turn is a meaningful signal, but the full-year gap won't close.

Collaborative Robots Reach a New Quarterly High

Cobots had a standout quarter on their own terms. North American companies ordered 1,831 collaborative robot units in Q3 2026, valued at $63.8 million, up 56% year over year. Cobots represented 16.7% of all robot units ordered during the quarter.

Through nine months, the year-to-date total stands at 4,605 cobot units worth approximately $178 million, 15.9% of total robot volume and 9.4% of total order value. Life sciences led cobot adoption: cobots made up 43.8% of that sector's orders through September.

The One Soft Spot

Food and consumer goods was the exception to a broadly positive quarter, with orders falling 23.7% year over year. A3 didn't attribute the decline to a specific cause in its release. The result stands out against gains across most other tracked verticals, but food and beverage automation spending is often lumpy and tied to large discrete projects rather than continuous investment cycles.

What A3 Is Reading Into This

Alex Shikany, executive vice president at A3, offered this read in the release: "What stands out in the third quarter is not simply the magnitude of the growth, but how broadly it was distributed across the market. Automotive OEM orders returned to positive growth, while automotive components and sectors such as semiconductors/electronics and life sciences posted significant gains. That broader mix is important because it points to a robotics market that is becoming increasingly diversified across industries and applications."

A3 noted headwinds including higher input costs, trade uncertainty, and the timing sensitivity of large manufacturing projects as factors to watch heading into Q4.

The Manufacturing Context Behind the Numbers

The ISM Manufacturing PMI reached 54.5 in September 2026, the ninth consecutive month above 50 (the threshold separating expansion from contraction). Federal Reserve data showed U.S. manufacturing output grew 0.3% in September. Both readings align with the order acceleration A3 captured.

If that backdrop holds into Q4, North American robot orders will likely post a second consecutive quarter of strong year-over-year gains.

Sources

Companies mentioned

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