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"The reason why a significant portion of manufacturing AI (artificial intelligence) stalls at the PoC (proof of concept) stage and fails to settle into Yangsan lines is not due to technology, but a lack of understanding of the field."
Son Jong-uk (CEO) of AI Robotics, a faculty-founded startup from DGIST, stated, "Even an inspection device with high accuracy in the laboratory will cause the line to stop if it produces just one false detection on a Yangsan line, ultimately leading operators to turn off the inspector." He added, "Field factors such as soot and reflections, vehicle model changes, operator management, and conditions where the customer's PLC (equipment control device) cannot be modified do not surface during PoC stages."
AI Robotics' flagship product is "AIR Inspector," an AI vision-based welding bead inspection solution. The AI vision separates the welding bead area at the pixel level even through soot and light reflections, measuring length, width, and centerline deviation in millimeters to determine whether a product is good or defective. Multiple cameras simultaneously capture images by bead location, inspecting every product without slowing down production speed.
The problem the company aims to solve is false detection in vision inspection. If there are many false detections, 100% inspection cannot be operated on Yangsan lines; if standards are loosened, defects are missed. AI Robotics reduces false detections to operate 100% inspection on Yangsan lines. The fact that judgment grounds remain in the database as measured values rather than photos is also cited as a differentiator. Defect alerts are provided via a mobile app, while production volume, pass rate, and defect locations are available through a web dashboard.
What they consider most important is field data. Son (CEO) explained, "AI Robotics operates all installed solutions with a structure that collects, stores, and analyzes data," adding, "Field data is integrated into the cloud, and the welding bead inspection data accumulated to date exceeds 4 million entries." The inspection PC simultaneously collects line PLC signals, recording actions between process stages, causes of stops and resolution processes, and points of variation. It can be installed without adding equipment or modifying PLC programs, and the same platform can be replicated to apply to new lines in a short period.
The product lineup is expanding through 3D measurement. This method involves matching shape data obtained with 3D cameras to design drawings (CAD) to automatically determine errors. Equipment that measures all 120 holes in a battery pack case within the line has been deployed in Yangsan. It is explained that non-contact measurement with a repeated precision of 0.06–0.15 mm for part coordinates replaces Coordinate Measuring Machines (CMM). A detection solution that identifies cracks in press products within two seconds is also being operated.
The scope of application has expanded following global automotive parts companies. Starting from three lines domestically, it expanded to 19 lines across two North American subsidiaries and two lines at a South American factory, currently operating on 24 lines in three countries. Revenue increased by approximately 18 times last year compared to 2024, and this year, revenue has already surpassed the previous year's annual total as of September. The company is profitable even without external investment.
The next step is autonomous robotic welding. The company is developing a lightweight AI model that learns from inspection and measurement data along with over 500 robot teaching data points from skilled operators to generate welding paths and conditions. The company aims for a KOSDAQ listing between 2029 and 2031.
Son Jong-uk (CEO) predicted, "AI Robotics operates the company by simultaneously conducting development, verification, and deployment on Yangsan lines, while carrying out revenue generation and research together." He added, "The over 4 million welding bead data points and line PLC data accumulated from operating 24 lines in three countries will become a moat that latecomers cannot secure in the short term."
Meanwhile, AI Robotics has advanced to the finals of the "5th K-Deep Tech Startup King of the Kings (Registration for attendance: https://forms.gle/McNBqdiBts8RJazVA)," held on the 30th of this month at the B Hall Plus Stage of COEX in Seoul Samsung-dong, as a representative of DGIST faculty-founded startups.
This King of the Kings competition, now in its fifth year, has seen the new addition of Korea Energy Technology University (KENTECH) to existing participating universities: Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology (KAIST), Gwangju Institute of Science and Technology (GIST), Daegu Gyeongbuk Institute of Science and Technology (DGIST), Ulsan National Institute of Science and Technology (UNIST), and POSTECH (formerly Pohang University of Science and Technology). It is co-hosted by six science and technology specialized universities and MoneyToday's startup media platform, Unicorn Factory, with support from the Ministry of Science and ICT and the Research & Development Special Zone Promotion Foundation.
This year's competition is held in conjunction with "Smart Energy Plus (SMART ENERGY PLUS·SEP) 2026." SEP is an energy-specialized event hosted by the National Assembly Hydrogen Economy Forum and co-organized by MoneyToday and COEX.
A total of 12 teams, six each from the faculty and student startup categories, will advance to the finals. One team each in the faculty and student startup categories will receive the Grand Prize along with a startup support fund of 3 million won. This year, an Excellence Award was also newly established as the Lee (President) Award from the Research & Development Special Zone Promotion Foundation. Four teams receiving the Excellence Award will be paid 1 million won each in startup support funds, and award records can be utilized as bonus points or preferential conditions when participating in future special zone foundation support projects. Six teams receiving the Encouragement Award will receive the MoneyToday CEO Award and 500,000 won each in startup support funds.
<Registration for attendance at the 5th K-Deep Tech Startup King of the Kings >
-Date: October 30 (Fri) 9:30–17:00
-Location: COEX B Hall PLUS STAGE, Seoul
-Target: Deep tech startups and investment VC reviewers
-Hosts: KAIST, DGIST, UNIST, GIST, POSTECH, KENTECH, MoneyToday Unicorn Factory
-Application: https://forms.gle/McNBqdiBts8RJazVA
[MoneyToday startup media platform Unicorn Factory]
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