From drones to nanobots: Investing in the robotic revolution that is already here

The long-promised robotics revolution has arrived. True, it is not quite what people imagined only a few decades ago. The humanoid automata beloved by science fiction are still at best fringe novelties.

Yet robots have crept ever deeper into our lives. And that trend is only gathering pace, giving rise to some promising investment opportunities. Industrial robots have become the mainstay of manufacturing since their introduction in 1959. But the explosive growth over the past couple of decades of the information age, as well as progress in artificial intelligence and machine sensing have created a fertile ground for rapid robotic adoption in a broader range of applications and paved the way for better human-machine collaboration. How useful are specialist sector funds and what are...