Industrial robots, as a core technology and essential tool in intelligent manufacturing, have brought about a new transformation in industrial production patterns. China is at a critical juncture in its green transition and urgently needs to increase investments in industrial robots. Based on the policy shock provided by implementing the Clean Air Action in 2013, we construct a quasi-natural experiment to assess the impact of escalating environmental policies on industrial robot investment. The results indicate that the stringent regulation significantly inhibited high-pollution enterprises fr...