Robot Hubs: The Skewed Distribution of Robots in US Manufacturing
AEA Papers and Proceedings
vol. 113,
May 2023
(pp. 215-18)
Abstract
We use establishment-level data from the US Census Bureau's Annual Survey of Manufactures to study the characteristics and geographic locations of investments in robots. We find that the distribution of robots is highly skewed across locations. Some locations, which we call Robot Hubs, have far more robots than one would expect even after accounting for industry and manufacturing employment. We characterize these Robot Hubs along several industry, demographic, and institutional dimensions. The presences of robot integrators, which specialize in helping manufacturers install robots, and of higher levels of union membership are positively correlated with being a Robot Hub.Citation
Brynjolfsson, Erik, Catherine Buffington, Nathan Goldschlag, J. Frank Li, Javier Miranda, and Robert Seamans. 2023. "Robot Hubs: The Skewed Distribution of Robots in US Manufacturing." AEA Papers and Proceedings, 113: 215-18. DOI: 10.1257/pandp.20231038Additional Materials
JEL Classification
- D22 Firm Behavior: Empirical Analysis
- G31 Capital Budgeting; Fixed Investment and Inventory Studies; Capacity
- J24 Human Capital; Skills; Occupational Choice; Labor Productivity
- J51 Trade Unions: Objectives, Structure, and Effects
- L60 Industry Studies: Manufacturing: General
- M15 IT Management
- M51 Personnel Economics: Firm Employment Decisions; Promotions