Russia’s Steel Industry Eyes 25% Automation by 2030

By 2030, artificial intelligence could assist 90% of Russia’s metallurgy workforce, transforming how materials are developed and production is optimized.

Russia’s metallurgical sector is accelerating its embrace of automation and artificial intelligence (AI). According to Alexey Mordashov, owner of Severstal, AI-powered tools could be involved in a quarter of all processes in the industry by 2030, with 90% of employees working alongside intelligent systems.

Speaking at the Digital Industry of Industrial Russia (CIPR) conference, Mordashov emphasized that neural networks are already driving innovation, helping develop new materials and products more rapidly. By the end of this decade, AI is expected to play a key role in the development of up to 25% of all new metallurgical products.

This projection builds on progress made in 2024, when the share of robotics and AI in the sector reached 35%. Mordashov also noted that this year alone, AI integration could yield an economic benefit of up to 3 billion rubles.

Currently, domestic industrial software accounts for 35% of the systems used in production processes, highlighting the increasing digitalization of Russia’s heavy industries.