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Industry 4.0

Industry 4.0 is often called the fourth industrial revolution. The term embraces a number of modern automation, data exchange and manufacturing technologies.

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All Content on this topic

Screen showing an office setting where each object is identified and labeled by AI

Is AI a job killer?

Artificial intelligence is poised to transform our economies. Will it be a job killer or a job creator?
SocietyMarch 6, 202404:34 min
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Cool jobs, hot industries — the labor market of tomorrow

Labor shortages are a problem in many countries. What are the solutions?
SocietyMarch 5, 202426:06 min
Videostill | MADE

Smart factories — the industry of the future

Industry 4.0 and the networked factory are the buzzwords of today. Should we all get on board?
BusinessAugust 3, 202303:58 min
A man in a VR headset controls a robot

Hannover Fair: Industrial firms get to work in the metaverse

Industry players are increasingly turning to so-called metaverse technologies to improve productivity.
BusinessApril 18, 2023
Roboter

What robots can and can't do

Though robots can be faster, stronger and smarter than humans, they still can't replace us.
BusinessJuly 19, 202203:38 min
A traffic jam on the German autobahn

German infrastructure begging for overhaul

Germany has long put up with crowded highways, inconsistent rail travel and slow or nonexistent internet.
BusinessApril 19, 2021
Indonesian President Joko Widodo and German Chancellor Angela Merkel speaking at the opening of this year's Hanover Trade Fair

Indonesia pins hopes on Hanover fair to draw investors

Indonesia is expecting to draw in "sizable" investment in Industry 4.0 sectors like AI, machine learning and robotics.
BusinessApril 13, 2021
DW MiG Made in Germany 13.04.2018

5G: High-speed into the future

5G – the next-generation mobile phone network standard. Faster than ever before.
BusinessOctober 24, 201802:00 min
Dw MiG

Industry’s New Reality

VR headsets can help people with little specialist knowledge master complex tasks.
BusinessSeptember 26, 201805:16 min
DW Made in Germany Sendungslogo Composite

Made in Germany - VR takes the world by storm

Virtual reality is changing everyday life and the workplace.
BusinessSeptember 26, 201826:03 min
04.2015 DW Business Sendungslogo

DW Business – Europe & America

World leaders scramble to prevent trade war – Industry 4.0 revives German manufacturing
BusinessJuly 5, 201811:15 min
China's Fuxing high-speed train

From workshop to tech hub: China's great leap

The Chinese government believes that it can become the top tech nation in the world sooner rather than later.
BusinessMay 10, 2018
The Hanover trade fair entrance

Hanover Fair: Where humans meet machines

The world's largest industrial fair in Hanover shows us a future where humans and machines must work closer together.
BusinessApril 25, 201811 images
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Value of free trade in focus at Hanover fair

DW's Steven Beardsley tells us more about why the value of free trade is being debated at the Hanover tech fair.
BusinessApril 23, 201803:11 min
DW MiG Made in Germany 13.04.2018

5G: The next generation

Next-generation 5G wireless technology is promising blistering speeds.
BusinessApril 17, 201802:01 min
DW Sendung Made in Germany Kluge Kleidung

Digital Germany: Smarty pants

Smart clothes could soon connect to the internet, and be produced on 3D printers.
BusinessMarch 7, 201807:57 min
Made in Germany vom 28.08.2017

Digital Germany - The robots are coming (1)

DW investigates the changing face of the country’s increasingly digitalized workplace.
BusinessJanuary 3, 201809:09 min
DW Sendung Made in Germany Matthias Weik

Interview: Wake up, Germany!

Economist Matthias Weik compares Industry 4.0 to an approaching tsunami.
BusinessDecember 12, 201706:20 min
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December 2, 201712:04 min
Galerie Elite-Universitäten in Deutschland Technische Universität Dresden

Meet the robot programmers

The scientists at Dresden's School of Technology have noticed a market niche.
BusinessOctober 17, 201702:39 min
DW Sendung Made in Germany Kluge Kleidung

Digital Germany: Smarty pants

Smart clothes could soon connect to the internet, and be mass produced on 3D printers.
BusinessSeptember 26, 201707:32 min
Deutschland Digital

Digital Germany: Consumers

We get to know a digital personal shopping assistant and what it wants to do for us.
BusinessSeptember 20, 201709:10 min
Screenshot MIGDIndustrie4.0

Challenge: Industry 4.0

Machines communicating directly with each other - without humans. When are Smart Factories coming?
BusinessJune 7, 201704:10 min
DW Sendung Made in Germany

3-D Printing: Competition for manufacturers

They are at the forefront of industry and will radically change manufacturing: 3-D printers.
BusinessJune 7, 201704:07 min
DW Sendung Made in Germany

Is Germany digitally competitive?

Is Germany digitally competitive? Interview with Nicolas Zimmer from the Technology Foundation Berlin.
BusinessJune 7, 201704:36 min
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Paris robotics fair aims to spread robot love

At the Innorobo annual robotics event in Paris, robotmakers ask what it would take for consumers to embrace robots.
BusinessMay 17, 201701:34 min
Hannover HMI Messe 2017 Roboterhand

Hanover fair: where robots rule

Robots are the main attraction at the world's largest industrial fair. But there's plenty other noteworthy technology.
BusinessApril 25, 20178 images
Deutschland Hannover Messe 2017

Hanover fair: fellow robot?

Will robots take my job? That's the dominant question one hears at the world's largest industrial fair.
BusinessApril 24, 2017
Hannover Messe 2017 Angela Merkel

Hanover industry fair with clear focus

The world's biggest industrial fair opens its doors for four days with more than 6,500 visitors expected in Hanover.
BusinessApril 24, 2017
Hannover Messe 2017

Hanover industry fair opens

The world's biggest industrial fair has opened its doors in Hanover, seeking to allay fears of Industry 4.0.
BusinessApril 24, 201702:01 min
Global 3000 Industrie 4.0: Vernetzte Fabrik, Comic

Industry 4.0 and the future of work

The industrial revolution began in the late 18th century – now Industry 4.0 is here.
SocietyApril 21, 201705:39 min
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Global 3000 - The Future of Labor

Work and wealth, less inequality. Global 3000 focuses on the question: how this can be achieved?
SocietyApril 21, 201726:00 min
Japan Iga Fertigungshalle

Japanese companies eye German know-how

Japanese and German producers are both interested in making production processes more efficient.
BusinessMarch 22, 201702:33 min
DW Sendung Made in Germany Japan 4.0

Japan and Industry 4.0

German technology can help Japanese factories connect with one another. It’s a lucrative business.
BusinessMarch 21, 201707:27 min
Logo "Made in Germany"

Made in Germany - Industry 4.0: High-tech vs Tradition

Job descriptions are changing dramatically. How are companies preparing for digitization?
BusinessMarch 1, 201725:59 min
Arbeit Industrie 4.0

Automation still needs human touch

Machines talk to each other at a smart factory in southern Germany
BusinessFebruary 10, 201702:36 min
Japan Iga Fertigungshalle

German-Japanese precision works

Famous German tool-maker Gildemeister is now Japanese-owned and is called DMG Mori.
BusinessJanuary 30, 201702:32 min
Leichtbauteile aus dem 3-D-Drucker

From casting to printing

At a Siemens plant in Berlin, replacement parts for gas turbines are no longer cast, but printed.
BusinessJanuary 10, 201702:28 min
Symbolbild US-Wahl - Donald Trump & Wladimir Putin

Can Trump contain China with Russia's help?

In a DW interview, Thomas Jäger says that US President-elect Trump is determined to change his country's policies.
BusinessDecember 29, 2016
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Industry 4.0 in action

For many people, Industry 4.0 remains an abstract concept. But the potential is enormous.
BusinessNovember 4, 201601:20 min
Iga production hall, Japan

Japan-German Industry 4.0

A fusion of German and Japanese machine-tool makers is advancing Industry 4.0 technologies.
BusinessOctober 19, 2016
ABB EV charging Station at the 2016 Hannover Messe

Standards: natural enemy of the tech industry?

Know your AC from your DC, or your CHAdeMO from your CCS? There are so many standards, industry makes life complicated.
August 16, 2016
Shenzhen steigt in das rasche Wirtschaftswachstum

China's road to high-tech supremacy

Chinese businesses are buying Western firms and know-how as part of Beijing's goal to become a leading high-tech power.
July 15, 2016
Kuka robot holding a flower at a trade show

Opinion: Kuka doesn't need a puppy license!

Chinese plans to buy German robot maker Kuka are causing quite a stir. Henrik Böhme thinks it's much ado about nothing.
June 2, 2016

DW Business - Europe & Asia (05/25/2016)

Eurozone ministers reach agreement on bailout for Greece
BusinessMay 25, 201611:21 min
15.04.2016 DW Made in Germany Roboter 2

Intelligent Robots Changing Industry

Industry 4.0 is changing the world of labor. The robots are coming.
BusinessMay 25, 201602:59 min

DW Business - Europe (05/25/2016)

Eurozone ministers reach agreement on bailout for Greece, Labour Market
BusinessMay 25, 201607:52 min
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Getting ready for the fourth industrial revolution

Factory workers need new skills to keep up with changing assembly lines.
April 27, 201602:36 min
USA Ohio General Motors Fabrik

Ohio Lt.Gov. Taylor interview

Ohio's Lieutenant Governor Mary Taylor lauds the state's pro-business policies.
April 26, 2016
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How factories are getting smarter

The world’s fourth industrial revolution is underway.
BusinessApril 26, 201601:53 min