Korea Institute of Machinery and Materials to host global forum on humanoid robots and physical AI

Domestic and international experts from industry, academia and research institutions are set to gather to discuss the future of Korean-style humanoid robots and physical AI and chart a path forward for the field.

The Korea Institute of Machinery and Materials (KIMM) will hold the 2026 Global Machinery Technology Forum on Sept. 7 at the Korea Science and Technology Hall in Seoul, under the theme "Drawing Tomorrow's Industrial Ecosystem with Robots and Physical AI."

Physical AI refers to technology that takes artificial intelligence beyond the digital realm and applies it to robots and machines, enabling them to directly perceive, assess and act within their physical surroundings. Future machines are evolving from devices that repeat fixed motions into intelligent systems that interact with the real world and learn on their own.

The forum will also feature a live demonstration of KAIROS, a Korean-style AI humanoid robot under development at KIMM.

Developed by the Autonomous-Growth AI Humanoid Global TOP Strategy Research Group, KAIROS is an adult-sized humanoid standing 170 centimeters tall, weighing about 80 kilograms and equipped with 29 degrees of freedom. Its reinforcement learning-based locomotion system allows it to walk at a typical human pace, respond to external disturbances such as being pushed, move forward, backward and sideways, rotate in place, shake hands and swing both arms. In addition to hands being developed in-house, KAIROS is compatible with a variety of domestic and foreign hand attachments, giving it broad expandability.

KAIROS is expected to find wide application in areas ranging from household chores and caregiving to manufacturing automation, disaster response, and safety and defense.

The keynote address will be delivered by Chang Byoung-tak, a professor at Seoul National University, on the topic "Humanoid AI: Beyond Generative AI Toward Embodied Intelligence." Chang is expected to outline the AI technologies needed for humanoid robots to understand diverse environments and tasks and make independent judgments, along with the direction of their development.

In the thematic presentations, Kim Min-pyo, chief executive of Doosan Robotics, will speak on "The Present and Future of Doosan Robotics' Physical AI," outlining robot technologies deployed in industrial settings and the development outlook for physical AI. Ryu Seok-hyeon, president of KIMM, will present on "From Machinery to Intelligence — KIMM's Vision for the Physical AI Era," describing a future in which machines evolve into intelligent systems capable of perceiving, judging, acting and learning on their own, and introducing KIMM's research vision for expanding physical AI into robotics, manufacturing, energy, environmental and digital engineering fields.

KIMM will operate an AI Robot Hall and a Five Flagship Brands Hall to showcase its major research achievements. The AI Robot Hall will feature KAIROS, the Korean-style AI humanoid robot bridging industry and everyday life; core KAIROS components including high-efficiency actuators and sensory sensors; a land-sea-air autonomous cooperative delivery robot in which drones and ground robots work together to transport goods; an orchard autonomous monitoring robot that navigates open-field orchards to detect and track pests and diseases with precision; a last-mile delivery robot that moves seamlessly inside and outside buildings by linking with lobby entrances and elevators; and smart robotic prosthetic hands and feet that assist grasping and walking by reflecting the user's intentions and movements.

The Five Flagship Brands Hall will bring together the five brands KIMM selected as its institutional flagship brands in commemoration of its 50th anniversary: KAIROS, MANUX, KHEATUP, Air Five and KIMM Cyber Labs.

Through the forum, KIMM plans to strengthen industry-academia-research collaboration in robotics and physical AI and accelerate the application of research outcomes to industrial settings and their commercialization.

"Physical AI is a core technology that combines artificial intelligence with robotics and mechanical engineering to solve problems in people's daily lives — not only on the factory floor but also in agriculture, logistics, healthcare and caregiving," KIMM President Ryu said. "I hope this forum will serve as an opportunity to share the direction of domestic physical AI technology development and enhance the global competitiveness of Korea's robotics industry. KIMM will also actively advance physical AI technologies, including humanoid robots and core robot components, and push for the application and wider adoption of our five flagship brands in industrial settings."