Automation in Biopharma Industry Market – Global Industry Size, Share, Trends, Opportunity, and Forecast, Segmented By Technology (Automation Technology, Digitization Technology), By Application (Clinical Phase, Drug Discovery Phase, Production Phase), by Component (Automation Hardware, Automation Software, Services Project Phase, Services Operation Phase), By Region & Competition, 2021-2031F

Forecast Period	2027-2031
Market Size (2025)	USD 2.02 Billion
CAGR (2026-2031)	6.75%
Fastest Growing Segment	Drug Discovery Phase
Largest Market	North America
Market Size (2031)	USD 2.99 Billion

Market Overview

The Global Automation in Biopharma Industry Market will grow from USD 2.02 Billion in 2025 to USD 2.99 Billion by 2031 at a 6.75% CAGR. Automation in the global biopharmaceutical industry entails the strategic application of robotics, digital control systems, and artificial intelligence to execute laboratory and production tasks with minimal human intervention. The market is primarily driven by the critical need for improved batch consistency, stringent regulatory compliance, and the acceleration of time-to-market for complex therapeutics. Manufacturers increasingly rely on these technologies to mitigate contamination risks and optimize operational efficiency. Substantiating this demand, according to the Association for Advancing Automation, in the second quarter of 2025, robot orders in the life sciences and pharmaceutical sector increased by 22% year-over-year.

Nevertheless, widespread adoption is significantly impeded by the high initial capital expenditure required for implementation. The substantial cost associated with procuring advanced machinery and integrating it with legacy infrastructure presents a formidable barrier, particularly for small and medium-sized enterprises. This financial constraint, compounded by a critical shortage of workforce talent proficient in managing automated digital ecosystems, remains a primary challenge restricting broader market expansion.

Key Market Drivers

The Integration of Artificial Intelligence and Machine Learning in Bioprocessing is fundamentally reshaping the market by optimizing data analysis and enhancing process control. Biopharmaceutical companies are rapidly deploying algorithmic solutions to predict equipment failures, streamline quality assurance, and accelerate the transition from batch to continuous manufacturing. This technological shift is prioritized by industry leaders seeking to leverage data for competitive advantage and reduced downtime. Substantiating this trend, according to the Pistoia Alliance, October 2025, in the 'Annual Lab of the Future Survey', AI remains the number one investment area for 63% of life sciences organizations. This strategic focus extends beyond software, fostering a broader ecosystem of smart technologies; according to Rockwell Automation, in the 'State of Smart Manufacturing Report 2025: Life Sciences Edition', 50% of manufacturers intend to increase automation in their facilities in the coming years to minimize risk and maximize workforce potential.

Simultaneously, the Escalating Global Demand for Biologics and Biosimilars is compelling manufacturers to scale production capacities through advanced robotics and automated supply chains. As the consumption of complex therapeutics such as GLP-1 agonists and monoclonal antibodies rises, legacy infrastructure often struggles to maintain the necessary throughput and sterility standards required by regulators. Consequently, producers are heavily investing in greenfield projects designed with intrinsic automated capabilities to ensure speed and regulatory compliance. For instance, according to Manufacturing Today, June 2025, in the article 'Eli Lilly Invests $2B in New Plant Powered By Automation, Robotics and Local Talent', Eli Lilly increased its investment in a North Carolina facility to more than $2 billion to meet the surging demand for injectable treatments. This capital influx highlights how volume requirements are directly translating into large-scale deployments of automated filling and assembly technologies.

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Key Market Challenges

High initial capital expenditure constitutes a significant impediment to the growth of the Global Automation in Biopharma Industry Market. Implementing advanced robotics and digital control systems requires a substantial upfront financial commitment that extends beyond the purchase price of the machinery. Expenses associated with integrating these technologies into existing legacy infrastructure, coupled with the costs of rigorous regulatory validation and specialized workforce training, create a high barrier to entry. This financial burden disproportionately affects small and medium-sized enterprises, effectively barring them from adopting automated solutions and limiting the market’s expansion to well-capitalized industry leaders.

Consequently, the market experiences a slower rate of technology penetration than demand indicators might suggest. Companies are often forced to divert available capital towards drug discovery and clinical trials rather than manufacturing upgrades. This capital intensity restricts the volume of adoption even in major markets. For instance, according to the Association for Advancing Automation, in the first quarter of 2025, robot orders in the North American life sciences and pharmaceutical sector totaled only 127 units. This relatively low volume, despite the sector's strategic importance, underscores how the prohibitive costs of acquisition and integration directly hamper the widespread scalability of automated solutions within the industry.

Key Market Trends

The Deployment of Collaborative Robots in Sterile Laboratory Environments is expanding rapidly as manufacturers seek to eliminate human contamination sources from aseptic processes. Driven by the stringent requirements of EU GMP Annex 1, facilities are moving beyond traditional barrier systems to integrate robotic arms capable of performing interventions within isolators without breaking sterility. This technology allows for greater flexibility than rigid automation while ensuring the highest levels of product safety. Substantiating this trajectory, according to CRB, October 2024, in the 'Horizons: Life Sciences 2024' report, 91% of industry professionals identified operator-free filling as the future of drug product development, highlighting a consensus move toward removing human operators from critical sterile manufacturing zones.

Simultaneously, the industry is Automating Complex Workflows for Cell and Gene Therapy Production to address the unique logistical and economic challenges of autologous treatments. Unlike traditional biologics, these therapies require patient-specific processing where manual handling introduces prohibitive costs and variability. Consequently, manufacturers are transitioning to closed, automated "GMP-in-a-box" platforms that integrate isolation, activation, and expansion steps into a single streamlined workflow. This shift is exemplified by advancements in processing speed and efficiency; for instance, according to Miltenyi Biotec, September 2024, in a press announcement regarding the 'CliniMACS Prodigy T-Pro' system, the automated platform reduces the time required for complex cell manufacturing processes by approximately 40%, directly enabling higher throughput for personalized medicines.

Segmental Insights

The Drug Discovery Phase currently stands as the fastest-growing segment within the global automation in the biopharma industry market. This trajectory is driven by the critical need to accelerate target identification through high-throughput screening and automated liquid handling. Research laboratories are increasingly adopting these technologies to process vast compound libraries with greater precision, significantly reducing the timeline for selecting viable candidates. Additionally, compliance with rigorous data integrity expectations from institutions such as the US FDA reinforces the shift toward automated documentation and standardized workflows to minimize variability during early-stage development.

Regional Insights

North America maintains a leading position in the global automation of the biopharmaceutical industry, driven by significant capital allocation toward research and development. The dominance of the region is supported by the presence of numerous large-scale biopharmaceutical manufacturers that prioritize operational efficiency. Additionally, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration actively promotes the adoption of modern manufacturing standards to ensure consistency and compliance, which accelerates the integration of automated solutions. This combination of regulatory encouragement and strong industrial infrastructure enables the region to effectively implement process automation technologies.

Recent Developments

• In September 2025, Beckman Coulter Life Sciences established a strategic partnership with Hombrechtikon Systems Engineering AG (HSE•AG) to enhance nucleic acid quantification through automation. This collaboration involved integrating the HSE eviDense UV Photometer directly onto the deck of Beckman Coulter’s Biomek i-Series automated workstations. The combined system allowed for real-time absorbance measurements within the liquid handling process, eliminating the need for manual intervention and speeding up results. By streamlining workflows from normalization to yield characterization, the partnership aimed to improve data integrity and decision-making for laboratories involved in molecular biology and diagnostics.
• In January 2025, Cytiva and Cellular Origins formed a strategic collaboration to advance the manufacturing of cell and gene therapies. The companies combined Cytiva’s automated Sefia platform with Cellular Origins’ Constellation robotic system to create an integrated solution capable of scaling production to industrial levels. This partnership addressed the industry's need for higher throughput by enabling the seamless automation of personalized and small-batch therapies without altering established discovery or clinical processes. The joint effort focused on reducing labor requirements and production costs while ensuring digital interconnection and quality control across the manufacturing workflow.
• In May 2024, Sartorius entered into a collaboration with Sanofi to develop an end-to-end platform for integrated and continuous downstream bioprocessing. Under this agreement, Sartorius utilized its engineering and manufacturing expertise to commercialize platforms based on prototypes originally created by the pharmaceutical company. The partnership aimed to maximize efficiency by enabling a steady flow of materials and integrating multiple unit operations into a lean process, significantly reducing the manufacturing footprint and resource consumption. Sartorius gained exclusive access to specific patents and know-how to offer this continuous biomanufacturing solution to customers worldwide.
• In January 2024, Thermo Fisher Scientific launched the Gibco Cell Therapy Systems (CTS) Cellmation Software to improve the automation of cell therapy manufacturing. This digital solution was designed to connect and integrate workflows across various Thermo Fisher Scientific instruments while ensuring compliance with current good manufacturing practices (cGMP). The software, powered by a distributed control system from Emerson, helped reduce manual touchpoints and the associated risks of error or contamination. It enabled data traceability and repeatability within a single user-friendly interface, supporting the scalability of cell therapy production for biopharmaceutical developers.

Key Market Players

• PerkinElmer, Inc.
• AMETEK, Inc.
• Autodesk, Inc.
• Baumueller-Nuermont Corp
• Emerson Electric Co.
• Kawasaki Heavy Industries, Ltd
• RheoSense Inc.
• Rockwell Automation, Inc.
• Sartorius Stedim Biotech SA
• Siemens Healthineers AG

By Technology	By Application	By Region
Automation Technology Digitization Technology	Clinical Phase Drug Discovery Phase Production Phase	North America Europe Asia Pacific South America Middle East & Africa

Report Scope:

In this report, the Global Automation in Biopharma Industry Market has been segmented into the following categories, in addition to the industry trends which have also been detailed below:

• Automation in Biopharma Industry Market, By Technology:

• Automation Technology
• Digitization Technology

• Automation in Biopharma Industry Market, By Application:

• Clinical Phase
• Drug Discovery Phase
• Production Phase

• Automation in Biopharma Industry Market, By Region:

• North America
• United States
• Canada
• Mexico
• Europe
• France
• United Kingdom
• Italy
• Germany
• Spain
• Asia Pacific
• China
• India
• Japan
• Australia
• South Korea
• South America
• Brazil
• Argentina
• Colombia
• Middle East & Africa
• South Africa
• Saudi Arabia
• UAE