Within the Robotics Summit opening keynote, QNX President John Wall, second from proper, joined (from left) Locus Robotics’ Hamid Montazeri, Common Robots’ Anders Beck, Amazon Robotics’ Aaron Parness, and moderator Eugene Demaitre. Supply: QNX
BOSTON — On the Robotics Summit & Expo this week, QNX offered its newest analysis research, “Contained in the Robotic: Structure Benchmark Report.” It examined how robotics growth is altering as methods turn out to be extra software program‑pushed, enabled by AI, and deployed alongside individuals.
“Robotics groups are clearly pushing towards extra clever, autonomous methods, however the information exhibits they’re additionally working up towards the very actual limits of architectures that had been by no means designed for this degree of complexity or accountability,” said Jim Hirsch, international vp of of gross sales and common embedded markets at QNX.
“Builders constantly cite 4 core challenges: integration complexity, certification delays, purposeful security dangers in human‑machine interplay, and making certain predictable habits when it issues most,” he added. “The excellent news is that these are all solvable issues and by specializing in stronger software program foundations, builders can set the stage for quicker innovation and a brand new era of protected, dependable, and extremely autonomous robots.”
QNX commissioned OnePoll to conduct a web-based survey of 1,000 software program builders and engineers working in robotics throughout a number of sectors, in accordance with the Market Analysis Society’s code of conduct. It collected information between Feb. 2, 2025 and April 3, 2026. All members double-opted in and had been paid an quantity relying on the size and complexity of the survey.
The research revealed essentially the most vital inhibitors to progress, the hole between system ambitions and present capabilities, and builders’ views on the business’s future, stated QNX, a division of BlackBerry Ltd.
{Hardware} is not the largest developer bottleneck
Virtually one in three builders (27%) named software program structure and integration as their largest efficiency bottleneck, in response to the survey. In contrast with simply 16% who pointed to {hardware}, the analysis discovered that future progress hinges much less on new {hardware} and extra on constructing methods which can be predictable, safe, and able to dealing with blended ranges of criticality, famous QNX.
As robots transfer from managed environments reminiscent of factories and warehouses into extra dynamic environments reminiscent of metropolis streets and hospital wards, builders are recognizing that software program is turning into the deciding issue as as to whether improvements succeed or stall, it stated.
Wanting forward, 85% of builders stated they count on software program to play an excellent better position in robotics over the subsequent three to 5 years. Groups anticipated that their largest investments will likely be in AI-driven determination making and cybersecurity (each at 51%), adopted by working methods and real-time management software program (37%).
QNX stated this additional displays how software program foundations have gotten strategic belongings as robotics methods develop extra complicated, interconnected, and distributed.
The survey discovered that software program growth now consumes extra developer sources than {hardware}. Supply: QNX
Deployments in human environments elevate the stakes, says QNX
Robotics groups are already feeling the influence of widening deployments. Greater than 4 in 5 respondents (83%) stated their methods are actually working alongside individuals.
Growing deployments of robots alongside individuals pose challenges. Supply: QNX
Amongst organizations that haven’t but deployed such methods at present, two‑thirds (67%) stated they count on to take action inside three to 5 years. This increasing presence in much less managed environments, from surgical suites to busy store flooring is driving increased expectations round reliability, security, and predictable habits.
QNX noticed that almost all respondents (95%) stated deterministic, actual‑time execution is essential to the methods they develop. Regardless of this precedence, most growth groups acknowledged that they proceed to depend on software program not designed for actual‑time or security‑important use.
The analysis revealed that 91% of respondents run these workloads, no less than partially, on common‑objective working methods (GPOS), despite the fact that security‑licensed business options are rated as the very best match for his or her wants. Because of this, 86% of those GPOS customers stated they’re open to altering their OS. QNX stated this distinction displays the rising stress between flexibility and the necessity for predictable, assured behaviors as robotics deployments scale.
Certification delays, safety calls for add strain
Regulatory and compliance calls for additional intensify these challenges, noticed QNX. Two‑thirds of respondents (66%) reported challenge delays due to certification processes, rising to about 70% within the U.Okay. and Germany. In distinction, solely 56% reported delays in China, the place regulatory necessities are much less stringent.
These delays can immediately have an effect on growth prices, supply timelines, and business threat, in response to the corporate. Cybersecurity requirements reminiscent of ISO/SAE 21434 and purposeful security requirements like ISO 10218 had been among the many most difficult areas to adjust to, cited by 51% and 49% of respondents, respectively.
Cybersecurity and purposeful security are high considerations of robotics builders, the survey discovered. Supply: QNX
Curiosity in bodily AI doesn’t equal readiness, says QNX
Regardless of the software program, deployment, and compliance pressures, ambition and optimism throughout the business stay excessive, stated QNX. Bodily AI was firmly on survey respondents’ roadmaps, with 89% saying that AI‑enabled robots that may understand, purpose, and act autonomously within the bodily world will likely be important to their organizations’ technique over the subsequent three to 5 years. China led globally, stated the report.
“Confidence within the lengthy‑time period potential of bodily AI is robust, however readiness stays uneven,” QNX stated. Solely 29% of respondents felt “very assured” of their capability to make protected, predictable selections in actual‑world environments.
Ottawa-based QNX offers software-defined and bodily AI methods for safety-critical purposes, together with working methods, hypervisors, middleware, and growth instruments, in addition to help and providers from embedded software program consultants. The firm was acknowledged with a 2026 RBR50 Robotics Innovation Award for its Normal Embedded Improvement Platform (GEDP), which is designed to assist construct protected, safe, and high-performance robots quicker.
BlackBerry stated its communications know-how underpins tons of of hundreds of thousands of autos on the highway and a variety of methods throughout industrial controls, robotics, medical units, business transportation, rail, and aerospace and protection.
QNX explored the survey ends in extra element in its weblog and the Code the Future podcast that includes Lian Jye Su, chief analyst at Omdia (see under).
