Lee Jae-yong, chairman of Samsung Electronics, is set to step up efforts in the robotics business. He will soon visit the RX (Robotics eXperience) Business Promotion Office directly to review the status of the robotics division. This will be his first visit since the office was established in July. As Samsung Electronics cultivates robotics as a key future growth driver, the on-site inspection by Lee (Chairman) is expected to accelerate the commercialization of humanoid robots.
According to electronics industry sources on the 21st, Lee (Chairman) is scheduled to visit the RX Business Promotion Office located at the Samsung Electronics Seoul R&D (Research and Development) campus in Umyeon-dong, Seoul, as early as next week. At the site, researchers are expected to demonstrate precision manipulation technology using humanoid robotic arms and hands. It was reported that Lee (Chairman) will directly inspect the level of completion and readiness of the robotics technologies to be unveiled at 'CES 2027,' the world's largest home appliance and IT (Information Technology) exhibition, to be held in Las Vegas, U.S., next January.
Samsung Electronics established the RX Business Promotion Office in July under TM Roh, president and head of its Device eXperience (DX) division. The unit was created to consolidate the company's robotics technology development capabilities and oversee the entire process, from research and development to commercialization. In August, the company also held a robotics technology demonstration for executives, attended by Roh and other senior leaders.
This visit is significant as it follows the DX division management's technical inspection, with Lee directly verifying development outcomes. The move is interpreted as showing the will to grow robotics into Samsung Electronics' next-generation core business.
Samsung Electronics plans to prioritize applying robots in manufacturing sites before expanding their use to household and service sectors. The strategy involves verifying actual work capabilities and reliability at its own production facilities, accumulating operational data to refine the technology, and then gradually broadening the scope of application.
Behind Samsung Electronics' focus on the robotics business lies expectations for long-term market growth. Global investment bank Morgan Stanley forecasts that the global humanoid market size will exceed 5 trillion dollars (approximately 6,624 trillion won) by 2050. It also projected that the number of operating humanoids worldwide will surpass 1 billion units. Goldman Sachs likewise predicted that the global humanoid market size will reach 138 billion dollars (approximately 182.8224 trillion won) by 2035.
Professor Han Jae-gwon, Department of Robotics Engineering at Hanyang University, stated, "It is a welcome signal that a giant enterprise like Samsung is fully entering the robotics industry, as it means the market pie is growing, but it also implies that competition will be equally fierce." He added, "The fact that even the chairman is personally stepping in indicates that significant effort is being put into the robotics business. The participation of major corporations is a positive signal for nurturing the entire robotics industry."
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