Robo-Stox Global Robotics & Automation Index ETF (ROBO)

[joe_techi]

Industrial automation, IMO is taking a long time to come to fruition. Manufacturing seems to favor offshore due to lower costs (labor, perceived taxes...). So what will drive automation in the US manufacturing sector may be perceived savings such as labor costs. But to invest in automation requires capital which is typically derived from tangible or future profits. One other way to gain capital is in reduced operating costs. Energy is becoming more plentiful in the US with the natural gas boom giving the US a leg up in "energy heavy" businesses. So my guess would be heavy consumers of energy that have a need for automation might have the capital to be first in line to invest in automation. So who might that be and what type of robots do they desire?

I frankly think that UAVs are coming of age if the FAA ever allows their commercial use.

The consumer robotics sector is also ripe but the mission application still has not been found, much like smart phones and video games. iRobot has a good start but vacuums only go so far and have limited appeal to the consumer (who says I absolutely need to have the latest robotic vacuum cleaner!). Whoever cracks this nut will do well