Robot-as-a-Service (RaaS) Business Models in the Market Today (2022 edition)

In this 2022 report on the Robot-as-a-Service landscape, we look at the diverse business models employed by different Robot-as-a-Service players in different market segments.To get more news about RaaS, you can visit glprobotics.com official website.

The top five segments for robot-as-a-service (RaaS) plays are delivery robots, cleaning robots, factory robots, warehouse robots and security robots. These are markets where there are clear existing cost models, such as performance fees, like pay-per-delivery fees, or hourly labor wages such as pay-per-hour wages for cleaners and security guards.These cost models serve as a competitive basis for robotics offerings to supersede and supplant. Can the total monthly operating cost of a security robot be lower or on par with their human counterparts, while providing superior and tireless surveillance and monitoring? Can delivery robots provide better reliability and shorten time of delivery through smart optimization to earn the same delivery fees or even reduce the fees?
RaaS Benefits. Robot as a service offers compelling benefits to both customers and robotics firms. Customers can immediately put these robots to production without hefty upfront expenses, freeing up capital for other projects. RaaS providers gain a sharp edge over CAPEX-based competitors in terms of customer acquisition, accelerate market share and strengthen their foothold onto the customers’ operations.

In other words, the RaaS strategy can help robotics companies acquire customers with higher success and at a faster pace.

RaaS is a moat. However, the underlying challenge is that RaaS companies require a higher startup capital vis-à-vis CAPEX-based built-to-order robotic firms. Yet, for companies that have implemented RaaS successfully, it is this exact challenge that creates a widening moat for competitors that lack the financial and operational wherewithall to run with this strategy.RaaS 101. Aside from research and development challenges, these are the some considerations that startups grapple with at the outset of their robotic ventures.

Target Market — Are we inventing a new service category or disrupting an existing one? Is the demand for our RaaS offering ripe, premature or soft? What is the size of the addressable market?
What are the legal liabilities and insurance requirements of operating a robot fleet? What are the regulatory limitations across countries, cities and jurisdictions? The different states in the U.S. are in various stages of approving PDD (Personal Delivery Devices) for sidewalk and on-road use in their legislation.

Financing — Do you raise investment or tap into debt financing? What are the initial robot production costs and the expansion costs for team and operations? How do we sustain negative cash flows in the initial months and for how long?
PILOTING IS ALWAYS NEEDED
Unfortunately, answers to the above are not easy to come by. Thus, most startups begin with a pilot or a trial to discover the answers.

"Consumer" Pilots — For consumer-oriented businesses, startups may need to work with supply partners such as a grocery chain or an e-commerce brand. For wide-area pilots, startups will need to identify suitable locations with friendly local authorities who would permit the deployment of the autonomous robots on the streets.