Tesla (NASDAQ:TSLA) gained about 1% on Wednesday after reports indicated that the Trump administration is preparing a major push to accelerate the U.S. robotics industry — a move that could lift companies tied to automation and advanced manufacturing.
According to Politico, Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick has recently held meetings with robotics industry leaders and is said to be “all in” on speeding up growth in the sector. Sources told the publication that the administration is weighing an executive order on robotics for next year.
The optimism spilled over into other robotics-linked names: Serve Robotics (NASDAQ:SERV) surged 8%, Richtech Robotics (NASDAQ:RR) jumped 11%, and Teradyne (NASDAQ:TER) added 1%.
The Commerce Department reiterated its support for the industry, stating: “We are committed to robotics and advanced manufacturing because they are central to bringing critical production back to the United States.”
This renewed robotics focus comes on the heels of the administration’s artificial intelligence acceleration plan unveiled five months ago. The Department of Transportation is also expected to unveil a robotics working group, possibly before year-end.
Momentum has been building in Congress as well. Although a proposed amendment to the National Defense Authorization Act that would have created a national robotics commission was ultimately left out of the final legislation, lawmakers are reportedly pursuing other efforts to advance the initiative.