Robots may help cushion impact of ageing population

Robots at work: A file picture showing humanoid robots working side by side with employees in the assembly line at a factory that makes automatic change dispensers in Japan. – Reuters

MUMBAI: Japan and Germany may be sitting on a ticking demographic time bomb where ageing populations begin to drag down economic growth. Good thing they’re also prime candidates for robot revolutions. Increased automation and more use of robotic technology in these manufacturing powerhouses could help cushion the impact, according to Moody’s Investors Service.

“To the extent that robots can undertake activity that require labour, they will compensate for the negative impact that a slower growth in labour force would have otherwise had on growth,” Moody’s analysts wrote in the report this month.