{
  "id": 12093204,
  "title": "Why ordinary investors struggle to buy into the robotics boom",
  "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/10/05/why-ordinary-investors-struggle-to-buy-into-the-robotics-boom-12093204",
  "topic": "finance",
  "section": "Finance & Markets",
  "published": "2026-10-05T06:15:45.000Z",
  "source": {
    "name": "Euronews Business",
    "slug": "euronews-business",
    "url": "https://www.euronews.com/2026/10/05/why-ordinary-investors-struggle-to-buy-into-the-robotics-boom"
  },
  "original_language": "en",
  "account": "Investors seeking to profit from the robotics boom encounter a significant hurdle: shares of the start-ups driving this trend cannot be purchased on traditional stock exchanges. Instead, ordinary investors must rely on alternative investment vehicles, each with its own set of risks.\n\nOne option is to invest in Tesla, which many believe will derive a substantial portion of its value from its humanoid robot, Optimus, and its robotaxi service. However, Tesla's primary business remains automotive, with robot sales yet to generate significant revenue. Tesla's valuation is extremely high, trading on 165 times forward earnings, a stark contrast to European car manufacturers typically trading at less than 10 times forward earnings.\n\nAnother avenue is to invest in industrial groups where robotics constitute only a portion of their business. Companies like Fanuc, ABB, and KUKA have significant industrial robot sales but do not list their robotics divisions separately. Similarly, Siemens focuses on software and controllers rather than building the robots themselves.\n\nFor those willing to delve deeper, listed funds such as RoboStrategy offer a route to gain exposure to private robotics companies. Currently holding stakes in firms like Figure AI, Dyna Robotics, and Apptronik, RoboStrategy's shares opened at $27.34 but experienced a steep premium of 2.4 times its net asset value by May. However, this premium has since shrunk, with shares falling to $59 and investors enduring a 25% loss. The fund's high expense ratio, including a 2.5% annual management fee and almost 4% total yearly expenses, further compounds the risk.\n\nRoboStrategy's existence underscores the broader trend: tech companies are increasingly staying private for longer periods, making direct investments in start-ups more challenging for ordinary investors. Despite the allure of early exposure, such investments come with substantial risks, including potential loss of the entire investment.",
  "summary": "Most of the companies building the robots of the future are still private, leaving ordinary investors with limited options such as Tesla, diversified industrial groups or new vehicles like RoboStrategy, a Nasdaq-listed fund whose shares trade at more than twice the value of its assets.",
  "key_points": [],
  "editors_take": null,
  "illustration": null,
  "coverage": {
    "outlets": 2,
    "also_reported_by": [
      {
        "outlet": "Euronews",
        "title": "Why ordinary investors struggle to buy into the robotics boom",
        "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/10/05/why-ordinary-investors-struggle-to-buy-into-the-robotics-boom",
        "published": "2026-10-05T06:15:45.000Z"
      }
    ]
  },
  "ai_generated": true,
  "disclaimer": "Summaries, key points and the editor’s take are written by software from other outlets’ reporting and may contain errors — always check the linked original."
}