Research Overview

Global workforce shortages are accelerating the adoption of unmanned solutions for several industries. Unmanned ground vehicles (UGVs) can play an important role in this process by lowering costs and performing tasks in remote areas where workers are difficult to find. There is a significant overlap in military and commercial UGVs, with many platforms capable of performing tasks in both areas. While military applications are important, commercial end-use for UGVs has grown in the last 3 years, with agriculture, mining, and last-mile delivery being the industries where UGV platforms have experienced the highest growth rates. In addition, the drive for ecological solutions with lower carbon emissions will propel unmanned solutions growth due to their lower carbon footprint than conventional methods. In addition, as with other unmanned systems, technological developments in autonomy and artificial intelligence will further incentivize the adoption of unmanned ground vehicles by lowering costs and the time needed to process data gathered by the platform.

Relevant challenges to market growth include competition from drones, which also benefit from the same technological advances and lower carbon emissions, and supply chain disruptions, which currently inhibit the mass production of UGVs. High adoption costs will prevent businesses in the developing world from adopting unmanned solutions.

This Frost & Sullivan study highlights the most promising growth opportunities for commercial UGVs. It details the industries where commercial unmanned solution use is growing due to workforce shortages, increasing labor costs, and a need for ecological applications. These growth opportunities explain how UGVs can play an important role in these industries while highlighting how industry participants can take advantage of these developments. This report presents information analyzed from several sources, such as reports in the Frost & Sullivan database, industry papers, and specialized magazines focusing on unmanned systems. Interviews with industry participants provide additional insights into the market and validate published information.