The IAB promotes the participation of industrial partners in RAS activities, creates links between industry, academia and government, supports industry involvement in standards and technology roadmap development, promotes and supports diversity in industry and entrepreneurship. Our ongoing activities include Standards Working Groups, Industry and Entrepreneurship Forums or Showcases at RAS Flagship Conferences. Our latest initiatives are the production of a Robotics Industry Report (Q1 2026) and the preparation of Robotics Entrepreneurship Education material and conference workshops.
We work closely with the Conference Activities Board (CAB) to develop Forums, Startup Showcases and to support the Access to Talent program. We also work with the Technical Activities Board (TAB) to highlight the latest research relevant to industry partners and to develop Robotics Standards. We work with the Members Activities Board (MAB) and the new Educational Activities Board (EAB) to support robotics education, and the diversity and professional development of alll roboticists. We work with the Media Services Board (MSB) to share relevant information and thought leadership to the whole community.
The core themes of the IAB are:
Robotics Standards
Industry and Startup Support
Awards, Data and Roadmaps
The Industrial Activities Board is composed of the RAS President, the IAB Vice President, up to four Associate VPs and additional members appointed by the RAS President and IAB Vice President. Please visit the About RAS section for more information about members of the IAB.
Robotics has become a hot topic. New forms of robots, from mobile robots to humanoids, are reaching new market areas and making headlines. Investment into robotics was almost non-existent ten to fifteen years ago but has since reached billions of dollars, creating a window into the future commercialization of robotics across a wide range of industries.
The RAS Industry Activities Board’s inaugural Global Robotics Industry Funding Report provides a timeline of robotics company formation and funding across regions, countries, funding stages and markets. The increase in funding is clear, and in spite of the impact of the pandemic, tariffs and interest rates, robotics investment is continuing to grow comparative to overall global investment.
With 44 Technical Committees under the RAS umbrella, it can be challenging to know how to get involved. The Industry Activities Board has grouped these Committees together so that you can go straight to your area of interest. All Technical Committees are open to any RAS member. You freely subscribe to the committees that interest you via the IEEE Catalog.
Download “Making the Vanguard of Robotics Research More Available to Professionals” here in either the .pdf version
The RAS Industrial Activities Board is growing rapidly to respond to the rapid growth in robotics commercialization and we have many committees and workgroups that you can participate in. If something in the Industry & Government area of RAS interests you, please apply to join.
