MTC: UK should learn lessons from abroad to boost its use of robots
20 February 2026 
The Manufacturing Technology Centre (MTC) has released a White Paper arguing that the UK should learn lessons from abroad on how to accelerate its adoption of robots and autonomous systems (RAS) to unlock economic and industrial benefits, and to boost productivity. It suggests a path to speeding up technology adoption, building a strong base of RAS businesses to boost investor confidence, aligning regional priorities, and laying the groundwork for a coordinated national action plan.
Called Global Robotics Clusters Study: A Blueprint to Accelerate the UK Adoption of Robotics & Autonomous Systems, the paper examines how high-impact robotics clusters have been created in other parts of the world – including Denmark, Germany, Singapore and the US.
The report goes behind the scenes of these hubs to uncover how they work. It explores how long‑term investment, shared testbeds, and targeted adoption programmes are helping businesses to move from pilot projects to deployed systems. It highlights how robotics clusters are not just collections of companies, but carefully nurtured systems that connect industry, academia, government, and investors around a shared mission.
The report contrasts the success of the overseas clusters with the situation in the UK, highlighting some of the barriers that are slowing the transition from research to widespread industrial use. These include:
- the relatively lower number of robots in the UK;
- slow uptake among SMEs;
- skills shortages;
- unclear routes to market;
- fragmented support; and
- short funding cycles.
By comparing these issues with global best practice, the report identifies where the UK’s efforts are diverging, and outlines a coordinated national and regional blueprint that, it argues, could close the gaps and drive faster adoption.
The report calls for a UK-wide action plan to align government activity in areas such as adoption, standards and technology translation. Regionally, it recommends establishing a small number of robotics clusters that would act as vendor-neutral proving grounds, offering shared testbeds and early-stage procurement routes to help businesses deploy mature technologies more quickly.
“What stands out from the most successful global clusters is that businesses thrive when the pathway to adoption is simple, proven and properly supported,” says the MTC’s chief automation officer, Mike Wilson. “Too often in the UK, companies are left to navigate fragmented advice and short-term initiatives, which slows momentum and adds risk.
“This blueprint is about giving businesses a clearer route: consistent support, access to trusted technology partners, and environments where solutions can be tested before committing to capital,” he adds. “This shift will give organisations the confidence to adopt robotics, helping to shorten adoption cycles, reduce costs and make automation a realistic step for businesses of every size while improving productivity across the UK.”
