South Korea's Robotics Revolution: Over 1,000 Robots per 10,000 Workers

In this talk

1. 0:06

   South Korea’s robotics push

   The presenter says South Korea has more than 1,000 industrial robots for every 10,000 workers and describes investment in AI and robotics. The K-Humanoid project aims to reach mass production before the decade ends.

2. 0:45

   Humanoids for work and service

   AeiROBOT’s ALICE line includes ALICE 4, a 160-centimeter, 45-kilogram biped with 41 degrees of freedom and AI-assisted movement and manipulation. The presenter also describes AIMY, a 150-centimeter welcome robot built for conversation, indoor navigation, and customer service. WIRobotics’ Alex prototype uses compliant actuators and force sensing, with practical deployments targeted for homes, hospitality, and manufacturing by 2030.

3. 3:41

   Research platforms and robot capabilities

   The presentation ranges across research robots, including Fibot’s badminton-playing C1, Rainbow Robotics’ RB1, KAIST’s HUBO 2, and KIST’s social humanoid KBO. It highlights examples such as force-sensitive handling, autonomous navigation, and a robot returning badminton shuttles at up to 19.1 meters per second. Other systems shown include the orchestra-conducting Eve and Rainbow Robotics’ quadruped RBQ.

4. 10:09

   Robots in everyday settings

   Examples of service robots include Rob, a multilingual bartender aboard MSC Virtuosa, and Cabo, which carves ice for drinks in a Seoul bar. The presenter also describes public information robot Maro 3 and LIMS 3, which learns household tasks from human demonstrations. Mobility projects include a stair-climbing wheelchair and KAIST’s passenger-transporting Hubo CU.