Abstract
The evolution of artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning (ML) is reshaping smart manufacturing by providing new capabilities for efficiency, adaptability, and autonomy across industrial value chains. However, the deployment of AI and ML in industrial settings still faces critical challenges, including the complexity of industrial big data, effective data management, integration with heterogeneous sensing and control systems, and the demand for trustworthy, explainable, and reliable operation in high-stakes environments.
This roadmap presents a comprehensive perspective on the foundations, applications, and emerging directions of AI and ML in smart manufacturing. It is structured in three parts. The first highlights the foundations and trends framing the evolution of AI in smart manufacturing. The second focuses on key topics where AI is already enabling advances — industrial big data analytics, advanced sensing and perception, autonomous systems, additive and laser-based manufacturing, digital twins, robotics, supply chain and logistics optimization, and sustainable manufacturing. The third explores non-traditional approaches opening new frontiers, such as physics-informed AI, generative AI, semantic AI, advanced digital twins, explainable AI, large language models, and foundation models.