How's That Company? The business world is full of firms — but what do they all actually do? Companies split, merge and rebrand constantly. Some launch new ventures; others quietly wind down businesses they ran for years. This series breaks down the dynamic stories behind Korean companies through on-the-ground reporting and data analysis.
"In the age of horse-drawn carriages, there were three kinds of companies — those that focused on the horse, those that believed the coachman was the key, and those that worked hard on developing the carriage itself. In the end, none of them won. Because the automobile arrived."
With the era of humanoid robots now at hand, Robotis CEO Kim Byung-soo urged businesses to prepare nimbly for the sweeping changes physical AI will bring — just as the automobile ended the age of the carriage.
Kim made the remarks Wednesday at the Physical AI Frontier National Strategy Forum held at the National Assembly Members' Hall in Yeouido, Seoul. "Physical AI must not be viewed through the lens of past regulations or technology," he said. "It must be approached as an entirely new concept."
Also on display at the forum was AI Sapiens, a humanoid robot Robotis unveiled in April, which performed choreography from "REDRED," a song by idol group Cortis. The robot drew applause as it swung both arms freely, hopped on one leg and reproduced the dance moves with precision.
Kim founded Robotis in 1999 and has spent more than two decades building deep expertise in actuators — the components that serve as a robot's joints. Drawing on that foundation, the company is now pursuing the robot hand, humanoid robot, autonomous driving robot and industrial robot markets on all fronts.
First humanoid in 2013, now AI Sapiens — a second attempt 13 years later
Robotis first introduced a bipedal humanoid robot 13 years ago. It launched "Ttolmang" in 2013, but the product attracted little attention because the humanoid market was slow to take off.
Now, with the physical AI era raising expectations for humanoid robots, Robotis has re-entered the arena with AI Sapiens. The company plans to begin full commercial sales next year.
"Watching actuator demand surge recently, I felt that the humanoid era had truly arrived," Kim said. "AI Sapiens was built as a validation exercise ahead of our actuator launch."
Kim also said AI Sapiens holds its own against the G1, a humanoid robot made by Chinese firm Unitree.
"Unitree's G1 stands 130 centimeters tall; AI Sapiens is 135 centimeters. The knee joint structure is not significantly different. Test results show we have reached a level slightly superior to the Chinese product," he said.
Although South Korea is a latecomer in the humanoid robot space, Kim expressed confidence that Korean companies can compete effectively against China, the current leader.
"Many companies are using Chinese robots right now, but deep down they want their own robots," he said. "They do not want action data — the most important asset in the physical AI era — accumulating inside Chinese machines."
"The strong resistance to Chinese robots can work against Chinese companies," he added. "Korean companies have every chance of winning against China and Europe."
Actuator orders surge, overseas factory expansion underway — LG Electronics moves to secure supply early
Robotis' core business is actuators — the components that function as a robot's joints and muscles. The company has built its capabilities around the business since launching its actuator brand Dynamixel in 2003.
After more than two decades of single-minded focus, Robotis has entered a full growth phase as the humanoid market begins to bloom. Last year it posted record sales of 38.9 billion won ($27.5 million) since its founding, with actuator sales of 37.8 billion won accounting for 97.1 percent of the total.
Operating profit reached 3.3 billion won, snapping a loss streak that had persisted for four years since 2022. A surge in actuator orders from companies building humanoid robots drove the turnaround.
Robotis plans to raise actuator output from 220,000 units last year to more than 500,000 units this year. "Actuator demand is growing sharply — most of it going into humanoid robots," Kim said. "We expect production to more than double every year."
AI Sapiens is equipped with Dynamixel-Q, a humanoid-dedicated actuator developed by Robotis. The company began investing in production equipment this year to scale up mass production of the humanoid-specific actuator.
Robotis is building a factory in Uzbekistan targeting completion in 2031 with a planned capacity of about 5 million actuators. Once partial operations begin at year-end, total production capacity is expected to reach about 1.3 million units when combined with the domestic Magok factory, which can produce 300,000 units, according to industry estimates.
LG Electronics, Robotis' second-largest shareholder with a 6.6 percent stake, signed an MOU with Robotis in June to invest in the Uzbekistan factory.
LG Electronics has been building its own actuator production line at its Changwon factory, but its partnership with Robotis is seen as a move to secure early supply of the actuators it will need for its own humanoid robots.
'Open the Kospi door to domestic robot firms — the bar is too high'
Kim said listing requirements on both Kosdaq and Kospi should be eased to help domestic robot companies grow faster.
Robotis became the first Korean robot company to list on Kosdaq through the technology-exception listing regime in October 2018, with its actuator technology recognized as the key qualifying factor.
"Our sales were not large, but we were able to list because the evaluation placed heavy weight on technology," Kim said. "After that, as the robotics mood matured, investors poured in, the share price rose and we were able to raise capital."
He said Kospi, by contrast, remains conservative toward robot companies. "Kospi still evaluates companies primarily on sales. It now needs a policy that more actively welcomes robot companies," he said.
His argument is that domestic robot companies should be given a path to list on Kospi — beyond Kosdaq — so they can raise the large-scale funding their businesses require.
"Unitree, which is set to list on the Shanghai Stock Exchange this month, is expected to be valued at around 21 trillion won. US firm Figure AI has not yet listed but is valued at around 54 trillion won," Kim said. "Our government also needs to take note of the value of robotics and actively encourage it."
Cho Kyu-jin, a mechanical engineering professor at Seoul National University who was elected president of the IEEE Robotics and Automation Society — the world's largest robotics academic society — last November, praised Robotis at the forum. "Robotis' products are already widely used in universities and research institutes around the world," he said. "Ultimately, for Korea to reach the world stage, we need a second and third Robotis — companies that make excellent hardware."
"In the physical AI era, hardware is what you want to export. Hardware is hard to catch up with. Robotis was able to do it because it accumulated 20 years of know-how," he added.
joze@heraldcorp.com
