Artificial intelligence is no longer changing only software.
It is gradually entering the physical world.
Data centers, automated production lines, intelligent warehouses and humanoid robots are beginning to shape a new model of industry.
This also poses an important question for Bulgaria:
Will we only be users of these technologies or will we be able to attract some of the new industries and investments?
The factory of the future is already changing
The traditional model of the factory is gradually transforming.
Automation has long been part of the automotive industry, but today a new generation of systems controlled by artificial intelligence is being added to classic industrial robots. intellect.
The so-called Physical AI means artificial intelligence that not only analyzes information, but also manages physical machines, robots and production processes.
Humanoid robots are already being tested in real factories.
So far, these are mostly pilot projects.
But the transition from the laboratory to industrial production has already begun.
BMW: 30,000 cars with the participation of a humanoid robot
One of the most concrete examples comes from BMW.
In 2025, at the company's plant in Spartanburg, USA, the humanoid robot Figure 02 participates in a real production process.
Within about ten months, the robot supports the production of more than 30,000 BMW X3 cars. BMW Group PressClub
Figure 02 has moved more than 90,000 components and has accumulated around 1,250 hours of work.
Its main task was the precise positioning of metal parts for the subsequent welding process.
BMW describes the project as an important step in the practical application of Physical AI in automotive production. BMW Group PressClub
Mercedes-Benz also tests humanoid robots
Mercedes-Benz is also carrying out similar tests.
At the Digital Factory Campus in Berlin-Marienfelde, the company is working with the humanoid robot Apollo, developed by Apptronik. Mercedes-Benz Group
The focus is on the use of AI and humanoid robotics in a real production environment.
Possible applications include repetitive tasks, logistics and support for production processes.
These examples show something important:
AI is gradually leaving the screen and starting to enter the factory.
Threat or new opportunity?
This transformation inevitably raises the question of the labor market.
Will some traditional professions disappear?
It is likely that some tasks will be automated.
But the history of industrial revolutions shows that technological changes not only eliminate certain activities, but also create new professions, new companies and entire new industries.
The question is which countries will be among those that create technologies, and which will remain mainly their users.
According to Kiril Kirilov, Chief Operating Officer of Discoverer Petascale Supercomputer, Bulgaria faces exactly such a choice:
either to take advantage of the technological transformation and develop its own competencies and products,
or to remain mainly a market for solutions created elsewhere.
Data centers are the new industrial infrastructure
Behind artificial intelligence stands a huge computing infrastructure.
Data centers contain:
servers, storage systems, network equipment, cooling systems and uninterruptible power supplies.
They are the foundation of cloud services, financial systems, telecommunications, scientific computing, e-commerce and increasingly AI applications.
That is why data centers are gradually starting to play a role similar to traditional industrial infrastructure.
Where there is sufficient computing power, good connectivity and reliable energy, new technological activities can develop.
Energy is becoming an industrial factor
Here comes the key question of electricity.
Data centers, artificial intelligence, robotics and automation require more and more electricity.
The International Energy Agency expects global electricity consumption from data centers to increase from around 415 TWh in 2024 to approximately 945 TWh in 2030 IEA
This means more than doubling in a few years.
But with such an infrastructure, it is not enough to simply have electricity.
It must be:
reliable, constant and available in sufficient quantity.
Therefore, when choosing a location for a new data center or high-tech production, the following are increasingly important:
network capacity, the possibility of connection, the price of electricity and the stability of the electricity system.
What is the role of renewable energy?
Renewable sources will also play an important role.
According to the IEA, almost half of the additional electricity consumption of data centers by 2030 can be covered by renewable sources. IEA
However, wind and solar energy must be part of a larger system.
What is needed are:
a modern electricity grid,
storage systems,
balancing,
different generation sources
and backup capacity.
The goal is not for one source to power a factory or a data center on its own.
The goal is for the entire system to be sufficiently stable and flexible.
What is the opportunity before Bulgaria?
Here the topic becomes strategic.
Bulgaria has:
technical specialists, IT sector, industrial experience, geographical location in the European Union and potential for producing more electricity.
Regions can be considered not only according to the availability of land or labor.
Increasingly important will be whether they can offer:
energy, network infrastructure, digital connectivity and conditions for high-tech investments.
This could be particularly interesting for Northeastern Bulgaria.
Dobrudja has a significant wind resource.
If this potential is combined with a modern electricity transmission network and a clear strategy for attracting investments, the region could gain a new economic dimension.
Why Bulgaria is not yet using this potential?
Here arises the question that is increasingly difficult to ignore:
Why is Bulgaria still not able to move the development of wind energy fast enough?
It is no longer just a question of how much electricity wind turbines can produce.
It is also a question:
What kind of economy do we want to build?
If the industries of the future require more electricity, more computing power and stronger infrastructure, then the energy potential of the regions also becomes economic potential.
A common transformation
AI, data centers, robotics, electrification and renewable energy are often seen as separate topics.
But in fact, they are increasingly connect.
New industries require more computing power.
More computing power requires more electricity.
More electricity requires new facilities and a stronger network.
And the regions that can build this infrastructure in time can be among the winners of the next industrial transformation.
Therefore, the big question for Bulgaria is: