Trump’s Robotics Order Just Gave the Tortoises Rocket Boots
Why Small-Cap Robotics Stocks Are About to Outrun the Mega-Caps in Trump’s Automation Arms Race
Washington is quietly drafting what could become the most powerful catalyst American robotics has ever received. On December 3, 2025, Bloomberg and Reuters confirmed that President Trump is actively considering a comprehensive robotics executive order for early 2026, with Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick personally hosting closed-door meetings with industry CEOs. The stated mission: leapfrog China in industrial automation, surgical robotics, autonomous defense systems, and last-mile delivery while wrapping everything in the red-white-and-blue banner of domestic manufacturing.
The irony is almost too rich to ignore. The president who campaigned hardest on bringing factory jobs home is now preparing to unleash the very machines that will automate many of those jobs out of existence. Wall Street, however, is too busy counting money to care about the paradox. When the news hit, iRobot Corporation (NASDAQ: IRBT) rocketed 61% in a single session, Serve Robotics Inc. (NASDAQ: SERV) jumped 8%, and Richtech Robotics Corp. (NASDAQ: RR) added 6%, while the usual mega-cap suspects barely moved. The signal from traders was unmistakable: the coming boom belongs to the small and micro-cap pure-plays that actually build the robots.

