Technological transformation is changing the landscape of industrial investment globally. Sectors related to artificial intelligence, semiconductors, smart manufacturing, energy, and new technologies are attracting a greater share of capital and generating new needs for companies looking to establish or expand their operations.
In 2025, this type of sector accounted for 44% of the global value of new investment projects announced, compared to 16% in 2020. This growth shows how industries with a higher technological content are becoming more relevant and, at the same time, raising the necessary requirements to operate.
For Mexico, this transformation represents an opportunity. The country has extensive manufacturing experience, productive integration with North America, talent, and industrial infrastructure. During the first half of 2026, manufacturing accounted for 38.6% of the foreign direct investment received in the country, reflecting the weight that this activity continues to have within the Mexican economy.
However, attracting the next generation of industrial projects will increasingly depend less and less solely on having land or buildings available. Factors such as reliable energy, water availability and management, digital connectivity, specialized talent, logistics and growth capacity are becoming more important in location decisions.
This is especially relevant in the face of the growth of industries with more sophisticated operations. Data centers need robust energy and digital infrastructure; smart manufacturing requires spaces prepared to incorporate automation and new technologies; while sectors such as semiconductors and advanced electronics may require specific power, water, safety, and process conditions.
This panorama also points to greater specialization of industrial parks. Not all of them will have to offer the same capabilities or meet the same investment profiles. The opportunity will be to identify the strengths of each location and develop the necessary infrastructure to respond to the specific needs of the industries that can be installed in each region.
Mexico has a solid industrial platform to be part of this transformation, but taking advantage of new opportunities will require anticipating the needs of production chains and continuing to strengthen the infrastructure that makes them possible. In this new scenario, industrial competitiveness will be defined not only by the space available, but also by the capabilities that each location can offer to new operations.
Source: AMPIP Observatory, The Next Wave of Investment: Technology, Capital and Infrastructure Are Redefining Industrial Location.
