Corvinus University study: Robots offer limited solution to labor shortages

A study by researchers at Corvinus University of Budapest suggests that robotization may not provide a permanent solution to the labor shortages caused by aging populations. By simulating economic scenarios in South Korea, Australia, Italy, Hungary, and Turkey, researchers Izabella Kuncz, Petra Németh, and Eszter Szabó-Bakos found that while aging populations drive short-term increases in robot use to replace shrinking workforces, the long-term impact is limited.

The research indicates that the rate of robotization is more heavily influenced by the proportion of highly skilled workers and the technological structure of production than by the speed of demographic aging itself. Furthermore, the study highlights a natural demographic limit: as the high-income, active population declines, there are fewer individuals capable of financing further investments in robotics. Consequently, while automation may increase, it does not guarantee faster GDP growth per capita and faces diminishing returns as the pool of available capital for such investments shrinks.