Autonomous Seaports

cranes · AGVs · terminal systems

There are about 76 automated container terminals worldwide; China counts 60 of its own. The US has automation at two ports.

Automated container terminals: 76 worldwide in a 2025 inventory, 50 of them semi-automated; China counts 60 of its own, 30 fully automated; in the United States, automated terminals exist only at Los Angeles and Long Beach. They are about 3% of terminals by count and about 15% of terminal area. AUTOMATED CONTAINER TERMINALS Automated terminals worldwide 76 of which semi-automated 50 China's own count 60 of which fully automated 30 United States LA and Long Beach only ~3% of terminals by count, ~15% of terminal area. Counts differ by definition.
Automated terminals
76
China's count
60
Share of area
~15%
US ports
2
Hub
Autonomy

Finding

Automated terminals are few but large, and China runs the most of them while the US has two ports

A 2025 inventory counted 76 container terminals with operational automation, about 3% of terminals by count but nearly 15% of terminal area, because the automated ones are the big hubs. China reports 60 automated terminals of its own, 30 fully automated, including Shanghai's Yangshan Phase IV and Tianjin, which runs autonomous trucks. In the US, automation stops at Los Angeles and Long Beach, largely because of dockworker labor contracts.

Cranes and yard stacking are the most mature automation in ports; horizontal transport between quay and yard - automated guided vehicles and driverless terminal tractors - is what separates fully automated terminals from semi-automated ones. Electrification and automation reinforce each other: electric cranes, AGVs and tractors create charging loads that have to fit around vessel windows and crane cycles, and a terminal operating system that already dispatches every move can schedule charging too. Singapore's Tuas, designed for 65 million TEU at completion, is the largest automated port under construction. See Seaport Electrification.

Layers

Terminal autonomy layers

Maturity is an ElectronsX assessment.

Terminal autonomy layers
LayerWhat it coversMaturityNote
Ship-to-shore cranesRemote-operated or automated quay cranesHighRemote operators handle final placement
Yard cranesAutomated stacking cranes (ASC, ARMG)Very highMost mature port automation
Horizontal transportAGVs, autonomous terminal tractorsMedium to highDefines fully automated terminals
GatesOCR, automated truck processingHighCommon even at manual terminals
Terminal operating systemDispatches every move; increasingly schedules chargingHighNavis, Tideworks, in-house

Sources

Sources and scope

Scope
Automated container terminals
Sources
2025 port automation inventory and Chinese government counts via GetTransport (2026); port authorities
Updated
October 2026