People in Germany find it difficult to imagine robots taking over the tasks of skilled workers in many economic and social areas. In a representative survey conducted by the opinion research institute Yougov on behalf of the Constance-based robotics specialist Fruitcore Robotics, the use of robots in schools, kindergartens and education, as well as in the police and military, met with particularly strong reservations. Only 3.8 percent of respondents were of the opinion that robots should take over tasks from specialists in the education sector, while the figure for internal and external security was 6.8 percent.

The greatest acceptance for the use of robots was in the area of "warehousing, logistics and transportation". Here, almost one in two respondents (48.9%) would agree to robots taking over the jobs of skilled workers. In the manufacturing sector, 39.2% of respondents still agreed. In retail and supermarkets, on the other hand, only 22.5% are in favor of machines taking over the jobs of skilled workers. At 21.3%, approval is also weak in construction and skilled trades, although there is also a major shortage of skilled workers in this sector and robots can now be used productively.

The further away the subject areas are from the core application areas of robotics in production and logistics, the more difficult it is for respondents to imagine an active role for robots. In housekeeping, just under one in five (19.3 percent) can still do so. For catering, the approval rating is 16.3 percent. The tasks of civil servants, employees and workers in public administration cannot be performed by a robot in the opinion of those surveyed. Only 13.2 percent of people in Germany would welcome this.

There are also major reservations about the use of robots in the area of "support/customer service", although in practice text robots are already often used here or support employees in their work. Only 13 percent of those surveyed would be okay with robots taking over tasks from skilled workers. Respondents would also prefer to work with humans in hotels or other tourist facilities. Only 9.5 percent are in favor of the use of robots in this sector.

The high approval ratings in the areas of production and logistics are not surprising, says Jens Riegger, CEO and co-founder of Fruitcore Robotics. "These are areas in which robots are already widespread today." However, there are also smaller, cheaper models that can be controlled with user-friendly software, so-called "digital robots". These are also suitable for use outside of traditional areas.