Samsung Electronics announced on the 21st that it has established the RX Business Promotion Office, a robot-dedicated organization reporting directly to CEO and DX Division Head Noh Tae-moon. It is an integrated unit that brings together robot hardware, AI and software development, and product planning capabilities that were scattered across the company.
RX stands for Robotics Experience. Rather than a research organization, it is closer to a robot business control tower that will integrate everything from mid- to long-term strategy formulation and core technology development to commercialization within a single organization. Some view it as a move to secure new growth momentum at a time when the growth of the completed-products business has slowed.
◆ Scattered robot capabilities brought together in one organization under the CEO
The head of the RX Business Promotion Office will be President Noh Tae-moon himself. With the CEO directly leading the organization, the aim is to accelerate technology development through faster decision-making and execution.
The existing structure has also been reorganized. The Future Robot Task Force, which was launched directly under the CEO in late 2024 following Samsung’s acquisition of Rainbow Robotics, has been brought under the RX Business Promotion Office after about 18 months. Oh Jun-ho, a KAIST distinguished professor of mechanical engineering who has led the task force, will continue to serve as head, carrying on the role of transferring robot development expertise to Samsung Electronics.
Robot Center personnel under Samsung Research and robot research staff from the production technology research institute will also be consolidated into one place. Inside and outside the company, this is being seen as a total concentration of the core capabilities needed to lead Samsung’s new robot business.
External recruitment will also continue. Kim Hyun-jin, a Seoul National University professor known for his authority in intelligent autonomous robot systems and robot control, and Kim Eui-gyeom, an Ajou University professor who has built research achievements in robot hands and manipulation, are expected to join. Lee Dong-keun, who was appointed head of the Robotics Strategy Team, is also an external hire. Samsung Electronics said it plans to further hire specialists in each field to build long-term robot commercialization capabilities.
The hub will be located at the Seoul R&D Campus in Umyeon-dong, Seoul. The company plans to integrate workplaces for robot-related personnel and increase investment in work infrastructure such as laboratories to create a collaborative environment. A Samsung Electronics official said, “We will lead the global robot market.”
◆ First verify it in factories, then sell it outward
The business strategy can be summarized as a phased approach. The plan is to deploy Rainbow Robotics robots in Samsung’s own production facilities for verification, then use the experience gained there to enter the industrial robot and home robot businesses. Analysts say this aligns with Samsung’s existing goal of converting domestic and overseas production facilities into AI autonomous factories by 2030.
There is believed to be a reason for prioritizing industrial sites first. Factories have repetitive tasks and controlled environments, making it easier to introduce robots than in homes. The strategy appears to be targeting a market where technological validation and monetization can be pursued at the same time.
The top priority is B2B industrial robots. Rainbow Robotics is a company that has developed robots for industrial settings, including dual-arm robots, autonomous mobile robots, and quadruped robots, and it is expected to benefit directly from expanded cooperation. Founded in 2011 by KAIST humanoid robotics researchers, it was led by the team that developed HUBO, Korea’s first bipedal humanoid robot. Oh Jun-ho, who now heads the Future Robot Task Force, was one of its founding members.
Collaborative robots are designed to work alongside people without safety fences. Autonomous mobile robots independently find routes to move goods, while quadruped robots are used to move across rough terrain such as stairs and inspect facilities. The company’s strong areas also include joint development of bipedal humanoids and expanded deployment on production lines.
Samsung Electronics raised its stake in Rainbow Robotics to 35% last year by exercising a call option, securing the position of largest shareholder. Rainbow Robotics is currently transitioning to an expanded revenue model by dividing its organization into four business divisions this month. As the parent company’s new organization and the subsidiary’s reorganization align, the cooperation system appears to be moving to the business stage.
Technology validated in industrial robots will then move toward the consumer market. Samsung Electronics also said it plans to sell verified robots to outside companies and, following B2B, launch consumer humanoids in the B2C market. The structure is interpreted as one in which operating results accumulated at Samsung’s own factories become sales assets in themselves.
There is also an intersection with government policy. Samsung previously announced plans to invest about 60 trillion won in the Yeongnam region to develop it into a physical AI cluster in connection with the government’s three major mega-cluster projects. The reorganization of the robot business unit is also being interpreted as the execution arm of that investment plan.
◆ Robot hands and data will determine commercialization success
Robot hands are cited as one of the biggest obstacles to humanoid commercialization. Technology that allows a robot to grasp and manipulate objects like a human hand is highly difficult, and it also accounts for about 30% of the cost of humanoid components, making it a major financial burden.
Samsung Electronics’ solution is to pursue both internal development and collaboration. It is reported to be bringing in Professor Kim Eui-gyeom, an expert in robot hands, to build in-house capabilities while also reviewing cooperation with overseas startups that possess related technologies. Given the nature of the robot industry, where it is difficult to secure all core technologies through internal research alone, additional mergers and acquisitions or equity investments are also being discussed.
The data acquisition strategy has also taken shape. Samsung will build a data factory at the Gumi plant, its smartphone production base. It is a facility for mass collecting and training behavioral, visual, and tactile data so robots can move and perform complex tasks like humans. The strategy is to accelerate the timing of real-world robot deployment by quickly gathering manufacturing-site data. The data factory will work closely with the research organization at the Seoul R&D Campus and serve as a pillar for advancing robot intelligence and control.
Industry observers say the axis of humanoid competition is shifting from hardware to AI training data. Robots need large volumes of data modeled on human movements in order to respond to unfamiliar tasks.
As U.S. and Chinese companies compete to commercialize humanoids, Samsung Electronics’ distinguishing advantage is said to be its large-scale in-house manufacturing sites where robots can be tested. The company can collect data in a real-world factory setting and improve completeness over time.
For Korea’s robot industry, it also carries meaning in terms of creating demand led by a major company. Expectations are rising that parts and software partners could gain a pathway to build track records at Samsung’s factories, which would serve as a proving ground.