This special issue on “digital-based production” gives an overview about the current research on the integration of digital technologies into production processes and their fields of application. It covers topics from Industry 4.0, artificial intelligence and data analytics to the Industrial Internet of Things and Cyber-Physical Production Systems. This issue offers valuable insights for those interested in improving production efficiency, quality, and sustainability through digital technologies. In this foreword, we describe promising application fields of digital-based production and classify the submitted articles accordingly.