The global machine vision market is expected to experience a recovery in 2024, with an annual growth rate of about 1.4%. This growth is partly due to the continued expansion of the 3D camera market, while the recovery of the semiconductor and electronics industry, an important application area of machine vision, is also having a positive impact, and the growth momentum is expected to be better than the manufacturing market in 2024.
The global machine vision market is expected to experience a recovery in 2024, with an annual growth rate of about 1.4%. This growth is partly due to the continued expansion of the 3D camera market, while the recovery of the semiconductor and electronics industry, an important application area of machine vision, is also having a positive impact, and the growth momentum is expected to be better than the manufacturing market in 2024. In addition, some companies' revenue growth is also coming from mergers and acquisitions, which are actively expanding their machine vision product lines in order to provide customers with more comprehensive solutions. M&a activity is common in all areas of industrial automation, and seems to have been particularly active recently in machine vision.
Machine vision revenue growth is expected to be strongest in the Americas and EMEA (Europe, Middle East and Africa) regions.
The chart above shows the growth trends of the global machine vision market by major regions, with the Americas and EMEA (Europe, Middle East and Africa) regions expected to see the most significant growth by 2028, with growth rates of 12.6% and 12.3% respectively. This growth potential is mainly driven by deepening cooperation and mergers and acquisitions among large machine vision vendors. Companies are looking for ways to expand their product portfolios to develop comprehensive product and service solutions that meet the needs of their customers. As new suppliers continue to emerge in the machine vision market, global companies are keen to work with these "small and beautiful" companies to gain technology and expertise in various parts of machine vision.
In 2022, there was little or no change in the market share rankings of the world's major machine vision companies.
The above chart shows the market share of the top 15 global machine vision vendors in 2022 and 2023. Although there was little change in the overall ranking, some vendors, such as industry leader Keyence, increased their market share with a strong performance in 2023.
In August 2023, Cognex announced the acquisition of Scott-Moritex, a leader in the field of Japanese optical components, for approximately $275 million. The acquisition will not only strengthen Cognex's business foundation in the Japanese market, but also further enhance its competitiveness in the global machine vision space by enhancing its lens technology capabilities. Revenue from Scott-Moritex is expected to increase Cognex's market share in 2024 and the years to come.
Canada's Teledyne Imaging, already a large group with several companies, has also made several major acquisitions in recent years to grow and complement its machine vision portfolio. In February 2024, Teledyne Imaging announced that it would acquire Netherlands-based camera manufacturer Adimec Holding B.V., for an undisclosed amount. Adimec specializes in the production of customized, high-performance industrial and scientific cameras, especially for applications where image quality is required. The acquisition will further complement Teledyne Imaging's product portfolio, enabling it to further expand its market share in the future and strengthen its market presence in the EMEA region.
The Netherlands-based TKH Vision Group is similarly large and has been expanding its reach in recent years by acquiring a number of vision technology companies. The group includes a number of companies focused on the machine vision segment:
Allied Vision, Germany - Face scanning camera;
LMI Technologies Canada - Laser triangulation 3D camera;
German Chromasens - line scanning camera;
SVS-Mikrotron, Germany - focuses on high-end and high-speed cameras;
Net-machine vision component manufacturing in Germany;
Nerian, Germany - binocular vision 3D camera;
Italian Tattile - face scan, line scan and smart camera.
With its strong foundation in the EMEA region, TKH Vision will further consolidate its leading global position through an ongoing acquisition strategy.
Despite the recent high M&A activity in the machine vision industry, the current supplier landscape is still relatively fragmented, and Interact Analysis expects the machine vision industry to continue to experience consolidation and acquisition waves in the future. This will enable vendors to offer more comprehensive solutions to their customers without having to integrate their products with other vendors' technologies. In our interviews with vendors, we have found that customers are increasingly looking for vendors who can provide a total solution, that is, they want all maintenance and service needs to be met by a single company rather than multiple companies. The overall growth of the automation industry provides a good opportunity for startups to enter the market and expand rapidly with their innovative products and designs. At the same time, large suppliers who have long held leading positions in the market are also actively seeking these innovative products to enrich and expand their product ranges.
We provide a comprehensive database of the machine vision market in our new report, Machine Vision 2024, released in January 2024. We studied 11 major machine vision products in 20 industries, 9 applications, and 38 countries, providing a database of market sales, sales volume, and average selling price indicators.
