Bain Report Says Humanoid Robots Still Years Away From Large-Scale Deployment

September 23, 2025 by Sam Francis

Humanoid robots may be generating headlines and billions in investment, but most deployments remain in the pilot phase, according to Bain & Company 's newly released Global Technology Report 2025 .

The consulting firm said humanoids attracted about $2.5 billion in venture capital funding in 2024, driven in part by demographic pressures in advanced economies. Yet despite growing expectations, the reality is that today's humanoids are“heavily dependent on human input for navigation, dexterity, or task switching”.

Bain's report, in a chapter titled Humanoid Robots: From Demos to Deployment, highlights both rapid progress and persistent obstacles. Intelligence and perception are nearing human parity, thanks to advances in generative AI and vision systems, but battery performance and fine motor handling remain far behind.

Most humanoids currently operate for only about two hours per charge. Bain estimates that a full eight-hour shift may be a decade away without breakthroughs in energy density.

Adoption, the report suggests, will come in waves. In the next three years, humanoids are likely to appear in logistics and industrial tasks within controlled settings, such as warehouses and durable goods factories.

Within five years, improved dexterity and modular batteries could enable semi-structured service roles, from resetting hotel rooms to running hospital supplies.

A decade from now, open-ended environments like elder care, construction, and mining may become viable as robots gain“physical intelligence – the ability of autonomous systems such as robots, self-driving cars, and smart spaces to perceive, understand, and act in the real world”.

The report also stresses that ecosystem readiness will be as critical as technology. Regulatory clarity, safety certification, workforce acceptance, and public trust will determine how quickly humanoids scale beyond pilots.

Bain analysts argue that technology providers, component makers, integrators, and adopters must align on infrastructure, data, and safety to capture value as readiness improves.

“Humanoid robots will not replace broad swaths of labor overnight, but they will arrive in waves and deliver clear commercial value as part of a broader automation journey across enterprises,” the report states.

For executives considering investment, Bain's conclusion is pragmatic: companies that begin experimenting early, build workforce trust, and prepare infrastructure will be best positioned“as soon as the hardware is ready to walk through the door”.

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