AI drives service robotics market in Mexico

Service robots, in combination with AI agents, are driving the national industry, both in software and hardware development.

Service robots , combined with the rise of artificial intelligence (AI) agents , are transforming the national industry, covering both software and hardware development.

Service robots are designed to perform non-industrial activities, such as customer service, housework, product delivery, and medical services. In Mexico , this segment has shown remarkable growth. One example is ServiBot, a company that has installed more than 200 robots in restaurants and hotels across the country, optimizing operations, improving efficiency, and reducing costs.

Another notable case is Roomie IT, a project that began during the Covid-19 pandemic assisting the medical staff of the Siglo XXI General Hospital. This project has managed to expand its robotics services both nationally and internationally, demonstrating the continued growth of this technological sector. According to Aldo Luévano, CEO of Roomie IT, this trend will continue to rise.

“There is a very strong push in humanoid robotics. Today there is a lot of investment in research and development at a global level, especially in general-purpose humanoids that integrate vertical agents to address specific use cases, such as those that use generative AI,” Luévano said in an interview.

The CEO also highlights that the widespread use of AI is driving the adoption of AI agents, which will begin to focus on specific business applications, such as customer service and marketing. “At Roomie IT, we have been developing humanoid robots with AI for a long time. Our offering includes digital agents in the virtual space and capabilities to implement generative AI in the physical space,” he adds.

These humanoids can bring generative AI into physical environments, performing service tasks and offering solutions designed to interact directly with people.

In 2023, data from Grand View Research indicates that Mexico imported industrial robots worth approximately $239 million, representing an increase of 7.8% over the previous year. Likewise, the global service robot market is estimated to grow at a compound annual rate of 44.9% between 2023 and 2028, while in Mexico a growth of 13% is projected.

Currently, service robots in the country are being used in sectors such as hospitals, for cleaning tasks with ultraviolet light; restaurants, in customer service and food preparation; and airports, to guide passengers and perform security tasks. Although the Mexican market is still incipient, experts agree that these technologies will not replace human labor, but will act as allies to improve the efficiency and quality of services.

For its part, Dell Technologies predicts that “Agentic” will be the word of the year in 2025, referring to computer systems capable of planning, making decisions and acting to achieve predefined objectives. According to John Roese, Global Director of Technology and AI at Dell, “AI agents, combined with robotics, will be able to give a face to these types of services, transforming the way companies implement and build AI systems.”

Mexico is experiencing a surge in the implementation of service robots thanks to the need to optimize processes and the growing availability of advanced technological solutions. According to the International Federation of Robotics (IFR), sales of service robots grew by 17% in 2023, reaching a market value of $55 billion.

Both Luévano and Roese agree that the pandemic accelerated the adoption of robots in tasks such as cleaning, disinfection, and delivery to minimize human contact. In addition, in regions such as Japan and Europe, the demand for assistance robots for the elderly has increased significantly. This trend reflects the growth potential of the service robotics market at a global and local level.