In recent years, India has focused on developing localized supply chains for electronic manufacturing and electric vehicles and is actively promoting the "Make in India" policy, aiming to increase the manufacturing sector's contribution to GDP to 25%. These initiatives are expected to drive growth in demand for mechanical equipment such as machine tools and industrial machinery. This series of articles is divided into two parts: Part I analyzes the environment and general overview of the mechanical market in India, while Part II will discuss the opportunities and challenges within the Indian mechanical market to help enterprises seize market opportunities and pre-plan strategies to meet challenges.

In recent years, the rapid advancement of artificial intelligence technology has led to the emergence of many legged walking robots. Based on current robot products in Europe, America, and China, we have summarized the constituent elements of the new generation of robots (AI Robots), particularly humanoid robots, as shown in Figure 1. Compared to industrial robots, humanoid robots possess a more advanced and complex perception and interaction system, including sensing modules and related software (navigation technology, intelligent decision-making, etc.). They also require greater focus on balance compared to common service robots. Regular service robots have a chassis and use wheeled drives, so falling is less of an issue. Flexible and agile humanoid robots walk on two legs, need to adapt to different surfaces, experience more complex forces at each joint, and require faster response speeds from reducers and motors.

TESLA’s humanoid robot, Optimus, has continuously seen technical innovation since its public debut in August 2021, especially in its walking and object manipulation capabilities. By May 2023, the official website showed Optimus walking smoothly and grasping objects. By September, it was using machine vision technology to classify moving and non-moving objects and was fully trained end-to-end by neural networks, even performing actions like single-leg yoga poses. The Optimus Gen2, showcased in early December 2024, appeared capable of simulating the tactile pressure of human fingers, easily picking up fragile items like eggs. Optimus Gen2's hands have 11 degrees of freedom, and its walking speed is 30% faster than the previous generation, with its overall weight reduced by 10 kg. Its movement and manipulation capabilities are closer to human actions. It is expected that mass production of the Optimus robot is not far off, but reaching the stated goal of 100,000 units may require validated, real-world applications with actual performance. With continuous technological progress and gradual production capacity increases, the upgrades and validation progress of the Optimus humanoid robot will remain a global focus, serving as a key indicator of success or failure for humanoid robots in this wave of development.

A Collaborative Robot (Co-robot or Cobot) is defined as "a robot designed to operate in a shared workspace and interact directly and physically with humans in close proximity." Unlike traditional industrial robots, cobots prioritize safety and flexibility, allowing them to work alongside humans while boosting production efficiency. With the continuous evolution of Artificial Intelligence (AI) and smart machinery technology, the application scope of collaborative robots is gradually expanding from manufacturing to broader areas, including industrial production, logistics, medical care, and retail services, demonstrating strong development momentum.

In 2024, the global economy continued to face challenges from geopolitics, regional wars, and financial turmoil, leaving the machine tool industry in an uneasy environment. Furthermore, factors such as government controls on exports to Russia and Turkey, the yen's depreciation exceeding that of the New Taiwan Dollar, and the gradual unfolding of the effects of China's Ministry of Commerce suspending the ECFA early harvest list contributed to a third consecutive year of decline in both export and production value, further complicating the industry's future development.

If 2024 can be described as a major election year, then 2025 will be a year of transition. In early 2024, governments around the world successively elected new leaders who, upon taking office, immediately faced severe economic, social, security, environmental, and technological challenges. While these issues could have been addressed one by one in the past, their simultaneous emergence amidst a turbulent geopolitical landscape has multiplied their complexity. Looking back, the previous golden age of trade appears to have ended. In 2023, global trade in goods contracted by approximately 2%, a higher rate of decline than any other period in this century outside of global economic recessions, making current supply chain management even more challenging. Major shipping routes, from the Red Sea to the Baltic Sea, have descended into chaos, while tensions in Northeast Asia, across the Taiwan Strait, and in the South China Sea have gradually escalated, introducing greater uncertainty into shipping and logistics.

This article explores practical applications of lightweight design for green machine tools in response to global carbon policies and ISO 14955 standards. By integrating structural geometry optimization, topology optimization, and manufacturing direction constraints, it achieves lightweight yet high-stiffness designs to reduce energy consumption and carbon emissions. The study also introduces composite-metal hybrid structures to enhance rigidity and damping while reducing weight and energy use. These innovations aim to accelerate the green transformation of the machine tool industry and strengthen its global competitiveness.

Trump’s return to the White House will heighten global political and economic uncertainty. He is expected to adopt a tougher stance on China, reduce Indo-Pacific military engagement, and favor bilateral deals. Trade wars may escalate, with sweeping tariff hikes impacting China, the EU, and Southeast Asian supply chains. Vietnam benefits from manufacturing shifts but faces risks from its trade surplus. Businesses must enhance geopolitical agility, develop early-warning indicators, and implement contingency plans to maintain operational resilience.