Many economists and financial experts are looking through current economic data to try and understand what the most lucrative industry will be in terms of growth an investment in 2018. Many candidates have been thoroughly researched such as technology, energy (clean energy to be specific) and utility industries. However, I predict that the most successful industry to rise in 2018 will be the robotics industry. The robotics industry carries significant influence in many other industries and has been a driving force of economic growth within the US for the past few years since its introduction.

The robotics industry has a lot going for it. To begin with, the industry has built several significant supply chains across various other industries. Robotics draws from technology sectors and also fuels technology sectors in a relationship of symbiosis. One compliments the other in a unique cycle and as the technology industry grows, so too does the robotics industry. In addition, robotics has become an important option for replacing large amounts of employment, thereby reducing the opportunity costs of making various products in other sectors, leading to robotics products to become more appealing and desired. As a result, investment in robotics has skyrocketed as well as autonomous labor. This has been showcased in the robotics sector within the stock market. Robotics as an industry has grown more than the S & P 500, which is remarkable because throughout 2017 the S & P 500 grew at a record-setting pace.

Additionally, as the costs for producing robotics based products decreases, the availability of robotics in everyday life, not just in production has drastically increased. Robotics are currently being used in the healthcare industry, specifically in the area of assisting doctors with surgeries. The applications of robotics in healthcare continues to increase dramatically every quarter, which has been showcased in the increased stock prices of robotics based healthcare companies, such as Intuit Surgical.

However, there exists a dramatic problem with the robotics industry. As the industry continues to develop and accelerate in investment and growth, there exists a dilemma of employment and labor. Robotics and automation are threatening current jobs taken by low-skilled workers, which occupies a large percentage of the workforce. This is creating an imbalance in labor, which could serve to create a crisis of employment and unemployment. Therefore, while I have dubbed the robotics industry to be the most lucrative industry in 2018 I also attribute the robotics industry to be the most potentially dangerous industry int terms of employment for the next decade.