South Korean electronics firms expand robotics divisions

In early July 2026 LG Electronics created a dedicated Robotics Business Unit, reporting to CEO Lyu Jae‑cheol and led by Song Si‑yong. The unit centralised development, production and supply‑chain functions, opened a Data Factory at LG’s Yangjae R&D campus, and began building a Robot Foundation Model under the “One LG Solution” strategy for industrial, commercial and residential markets.

A week later Samsung Electronics announced its RX (Robotics eXperience) division, also reporting to CEO TM Roh and headed by Lee Dong‑kun, the former Hyundai executive who managed the Boston Dynamics partnership. The division consolidated scattered robot teams, set up a Business Promotion Office at Samsung’s Umyeon‑dong R&D campus in Seoul, and pledged roughly 60 trillion won for regional projects, including 19 trillion won for a data‑factory at the Gumi plant. Samsung increased its stake in Rainbow Robotics to about 35%, lifting the supplier’s share price.

Both firms will first deploy industrial robots in their own factories to collect manufacturing data for AI‑driven automation, with plans to roll out multi‑purpose humanoid robots for B2B and eventually B2C markets, aiming for AI‑autonomous factories by 2030.

Later July updates confirmed Samsung’s RX division will open research centres in the United States, China and Japan, while LG’s Robotics Business Center, effective 1 July 2026, integrated business development, sales and manufacturing, strengthening robotics governance and data‑factory operations at the Yangjae campus.

On 29 July 2026 LG announced a partnership with Nvidia to combine its robot hardware and manufacturing expertise with Nvidia’s AI stack. The collaboration will develop manufacturing robots, AI‑powered data‑centre solutions and mobility applications, reinforcing LG’s Robotics Business Unit and the broader push for AI adoption across Korean factories, which is supported by the government’s “Manufacturing AX” programme investing 20 trillion won by 2030.