After a weak 2023 for the global machine vision market, growth is expected to return in 2024, according to market research firm Interact Analysis. While global automation markets have grown, 2023 was a difficult year for vision system providers, with total revenues falling from 6.5 billion dollars in 2022 to 6.3 billion dollars last year. As a result of this decline, market researchers are forecasting single-digit growth of around 1. 4 percent for 2024.

While price pressure will continue for suppliers of machine vision systems in the first half of 2024, order books should fill up again in the second half of the year. The machine vision market should recover in 2025, which is in line with Interact Analysis' forecasts for growth in manufacturing and machine production.

6. 4 percent annual growth for machine vision between 2022 and 2028

Between 2022 and 2028, the machine vision market will grow at an estimated compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 6. 4 percent, with revenue increasing from 6.5 to 9.3 billion US dollars during the forecast period. The Asia-Pacific region (APAC) will be an important growth driver here.

Looking at the machine vision market by application, inspection dominates, accounting for over 40 percent of use cases in 2022. By 2028, inspection will generate around 3.9 billion US dollars. Due to the good prospects for mobile robots, autonomous driving is forecast to have the highest annual growth rate between 2022 and 2028 at 20. 8 percent, followed by storage bin picking (19.2 percent), which can benefit from the use of industrial robots in numerous manufacturing industries.

Suppliers in Asia with the greatest growth prospects

Jonathan Sparkes, Research Analyst at Interact Analysis, explains the machine vision vendor landscape: "The top 3 machine vision vendors, Keyence, Cognex and Teledyne accounted for nearly one-third of global revenues in 2023. Due to the stronger performance of end-customers in APAC, vendors in that region were expected to have had a better year than those with less exposure in 2023. In general, APAC suppliers – particularly those in China – took share from those who conduct more of their business in other global regions."

“Despite a plethora of mergers and acquisitions in recent years, the machine vision market is still considered fragmented. New vendors continue to enter the market, with over 200 active worldwide. We are seeing increasing activity from new vendors in China in particular, as well as in those territories where machine vision products are increasingly being used for autonomous driving and bin-picking."