China's Vice President Li Yuanchao on Monday encouraged robotics companies in the country to cooperate with international partners to contribute their know-how into the mainland's enormous market.

In a statement in an industry expo, Yunchao admitted that "Although China is the world's biggest market for robots, it is lagging behind in advanced robotic development... The country will be more open to overseas experts and enterprises so they can conduct joint-development (with local scientists)."

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Based on the volume of products being used, the People's Republic last year was declared the world's biggest market for robotic technology. The Ministry of Industry and Information Technology revealed that in the next five years, an estimated over 800,000 robots will be utilized by Chinese firms. Because of increasing demands, the country's turnover by that time is also expected to shoot up to 100 billion yuan ($15.7 billion).

China's President Xi Jinping in a congratulatory letter welcomed the idea of cooperating with the international talents in developing the most advanced level of robotics.

Currently, China is dependent on foreign giants like the ABB Switzerland Ltd and Germany's KUKA AAG to supply them with high-tech robots that are utilized in various sectors such as automobile and electronics manufacturing.

"It will not be easy for local companies to replace imported devices without overseas technology assistance," Li said. He added that in exchange for these technologies, the Chinese government can trade in market shares.

A professor from the China Academy of Engineering said that demand will likely increase because of China's aging population and its economic growth.

TagsWorld Robot Conference 2015, robot technology, advanced robotic development, Ministry of Industry and Information Technology, Robot technology demand, China Robotics