| Robots are increasingly utilized nowadays and have helped in the transformation and upgrading of Industry 4.0.However,the research on robot adoption in academic circles still focuses mainly on the macroeconomic level,with only a small amount of research dedicated to micro-enterprises.This thesis investigates the impact of robot adoption on firm value and its influential mechanism.With the further development of robot technology and improvements in their intelligence,robots are now effectively performing various tasks that were previously done by humans.The increasing adoption of robots in enterprises helps to improve automation.This,in turn,can enhance production efficiency,increase output,and improve profitability,ultimately improving competitiveness in the market and enhancing enterprise value.Using a newly collected database of robot use at the plant level from 2015 to 2021,we provide a microscopic portrait of robot adoption in firms and study its impact on firm value.Our empirical research reveals two key findings:Firstly,robot adoption has a significantly positive effect on enhancing firm value.Secondly,this enhancement is associated with certain influential mechanisms,namely,an increase in enterprise total factor productivity and operating profit,which in turn contribute to an overall increase in firm value.This thesis not only enriches the research topics about the impact of robot adoption on microenterprises,but also enriches the granularity of robot use data of micro-enterprise,providing a basis for understanding firm value.This thesis provides some valuable basis for theory and practice for better understanding the value of robot adoption to enterprises. |
