Aussie ETF provider BetaShares has launched the BetaShares Global Robotics and Artificial Intelligence ETF (RBTZ AU) on the Australian Stock Exchange, providing investors with access to the robotics and artificial intelligence (AI) megatrend through a portfolio of global equities.

RBTZ invests in 100 equities globally with a focus on ‘pure-play’ robotics and automation companies.

RBTZ tracks the Indxx Global Robotics & Artificial Intelligence Thematic Index which identifies those companies that derive revenue from at least one of four sectors – industrial robots and automation; unmanned vehicles and drones; non-industrial robotics; and artificial intelligence.

The index seeks to select the largest 100 firms deriving greater than 50% of their revenue from the above sub-themes.

If 100 ‘pure-play’ robotics and artificial intelligence companies cannot be found, the index will select the largest ‘quasi-play’ robotics and artificial intelligence firms – those deriving more than 10% but less than 50% of their revenue from the above sub-themes – until the index contains 100 constituents.

The index is weighted by market cap with a limit of 8% per issuer applied. Additionally, the aggregate weight of all the components with weight greater than 5% is capped at 40%.

Stocks are drawn mainly from Japan (which has a country weight of 42.2% in the index) and the US (32.4%), although the index also has notable exposure to firms listed in Switzerland (10.1%).

Not surprisingly, the industrials and information technology sectors account for the largest weights in the index with 46.3% and 33.4% respectively. Healthcare stocks are also well represented with a collective weight of 14.7%.

The largest single stock exposures are currently Intuitive Surgical (7.7%), a US-based manufacturer of robotics used in minimal invasive surgeries; Swiss-based ABB (7.1%), a multinational building automated machinery to be used across utility, industry, and transportation sectors; US computer game company NVIDIA (6.8%), which designs graphics processing units for the gaming and professional markets; and Japanese automotive manufacturer Mitsubishi (6.8%).

The ETF trades in Australian dollars and comes with a management expense ratio of 0.57%.