Research firm Fuji Keizai predicts that by 2030 the market for service robots in Japan will grow almost threefold — to 400 billion yen ($2.7 billion), writes Bloomberg.
Faced with a severe labor shortage due to Japan's demographic crisis, many businesses are increasingly relying on service robots, which are designed to simplify but not replace human work. This makes it easier to employ older or foreign workers, helping them overcome language barriers or physical limitations.
According to the Recruit Works Institute, Japan will face a labor shortage of 11 million people by 2040, and according to the state institute, by 2065 the average age of the population will be 65 years old (currently it is 49 years old).
The Japanese restaurant chain Skylark already uses special robot seals to take and deliver orders. In total, the chain has about 3,000 of these robots in service. For example, in one restaurant in central Tokyo, only 71-year-old Yasuko Tagawa and 20-year-old expatriate Ranjit Dhami Hawas work.
The company currently employs more than 4,000 employees aged 65 and over, up from approximately 2,270 in 2020. Foreigners make up 3.3% of part-time employees, up from 2.6% in 2020.