World Robot Summit 2025 to be Held

1. Outline of the WRS

Aiming to accelerate the social implementation and research and development of robots, METI and the New Energy and Industrial Technology Development Organization (NEDO) held the first WRS in 2021 as an international event featuring as its core a competition for robot technologies that solve challenges facing workers in a variety of industries.

Note: The first WRS was originally scheduled to take place in 2020 but was postponed to and held in 2021 due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Achievements in the previous WRS

Categories of the competition	Host prefectures	Dates
Industrial robotics category Service robotics category Junior category	Aichi Prefecture (Aichi Sky Expo [Aichi International Exhibition Center])	From September 9 to 12, 2021
Disaster robotics category	Fukushima Prefecture (Fukushima Robot Test Field)	From October 8 to 10, 2021

2. Policy for holding WRS2025

The worldwide development of digital transformation (DX) is driving the incubation of many types of innovation around the world to overcome social challenges, including productivity enhancement and labor shortages. Aiming to gather knowledge from around the world and accelerate innovation in Japan, METI decided to hold WRS2025 in 2025, the year when the World Exposition will be held in Japan.

METI will plan and organize the implementation of WRS2025 under a new promotion scheme (see the table below) that will make the details of the competition not only more sophisticated and fulfilling but also sustainable.

Categories of the competition	Host prefectures	Scheduled dates	Organizers
Service robotics category (future convenience store challenge)	Osaka Prefecture (Intex Osaka)	July 2025	Secretariat of World Robot Summit*
Industrial robotics category (manufacturing robot challenge)	Aichi Prefecture (Aichi Sky Expo [Aichi International Exhibition Center])	December 2025
Disaster robotics category (severe environments challenge)	Fukushima Prefecture (Fukushima Robot Test Field)	October 2025	Fukushima Institute for Research, Education and Innovation (F-REI)

Note: METI will proactively participate in all categories as a co-organizer.

*Note: This secretariat is an organization formed under the leadership of the private sector. The Nikkan Kogyo Shimbun, Ltd. and other entities, which served as the secretariat in the previous WRS, will continue to serve as the secretariat and organize WRS2025, including efforts for securing operating funds (sponsorship).

METI will hold deliberations on the details of WRS2025 in collaboration, e.g., holding discussions with related organizations, including the organizers.

Related Link

• Official website of the previous competition WRS2020
• List of video clips about the previous competition WRS2020

Division in Charge

Robotics Policy Office, Manufacturing Industries Bureau