Humanoid Robots Could Cost Just $10 per Hour, Says Futurist Dr. Pero Micic

Dr. Pero Micic is a futurist who foresees a significant change in labor. In the long run humanoid robots might only cost 10-13 an hour. His comparison is one of a robot and human labor. There is already a 70 percent cost cutting by robots compared to human beings.

The working days of each robot are 20 hours a day, and 330 days per year, which is approximately 6,600 hours per year. The average amount of hours that humans work is 1,975 hours per year. Robots do not take breaks, sleep or take rest. They are maintainable in a lifespan of eight years and can operate regularly.

Reduced Cost of Production

Each robot costs $11,000 to $33,000 to build. The cost of operation is between 23,000 and 30,000 a year or between 10.86 and 13.81 per hour. The prices of human workers are approximately 42.53 / hour with benefits. Insurance, bonuses and paid leaves are unnecessary in robots and this makes robots much more efficient to maintain.

Businesses would be able to save as much as 200,000 a year on robots. The saving is close to 70 percent compared to a human labor. The next generation robots might be twice as quick and be productive and even less expensive. Such savings may transform business across the globe.

With increase in size of production, robot prices will drop significantly. Micic anticipates that prices will be lowered below $10 per hour in the near future. By 2035, humanoid computers can toil in less than five dollars per hour. There are even estimates of 1 dollar per hour. Enhanced manufacturing and AI will result in lower cost and smarter robot.

Robots as a Service Model

Micic forecasts a change to Robot-as-a-Service (RaaS). Businesses will hire and not buy them. They will charge on an hourly, per-task or per-project basis. This renders high-tech robotics available to small companies. It also divides upfront risk in investment besides encouraging flexible automation.

Minimal human supervision is still required in robots. Mic incorporates $18,000 a year of supervision, approximately half an hour daily. Cloud AI will not only slightly increase the expenses, but the improvement of autonomy will decrease human input in the long run. Robots will work on a greater number of tasks on their own as systems become more mature.

The future of the world industries might change with cheaper ones. The factories can substitute huge segments of their labor force. This may be followed up by logistics, retail and services. Specialists threaten to lose jobs and destabilize the social environment. Others insist on the levying of robot tax or a universal income to compensate the effect.