By Heekyong Yang and Heejin Kim
SEOUL, July 21 (Reuters) - Samsung Electronics said on Tuesday it will set up a robotics division reporting directly to the chief executive to accelerate development and commercialisation in the field and establish robotics as a growth engine.
The South Korean conglomerate said the RX, or "Robotics eXperience", division will oversee its mid-to-long-term robotics strategy, core technology development and business execution, while expanding research capabilities at home and overseas.
Executive Vice President Lee Dongkun will head the Robotics Strategy Team, Samsung said in a statement. Lee previously led robotics strategy at Hyundai Motor Group, including the direction of Boston Dynamics.
Samsung also said it plans to establish robotics research hubs in the U.S., China and Japan, where robotics technology is advancing rapidly, to strengthen competitiveness by leveraging local ecosystems and expertise.
The development builds on a broader robotics push. During its January earnings conference call, Samsung said it aimed to achieve "tangible" results in its humanoid robotics business this year.
In April, Samsung said it would consider investment and acquisitions where necessary to accelerate development and commercialisation in robotics, while combining partnering local companies for technology development.
Samsung also said advances in technology such as physical AI was making robotics businesses increasingly viable. It said it planned to develop humanoid robots to improve both productivity and user experience, initially for deployment at manufacturing sites before expanding into home and retail sectors.
(Reporting by Heekyong Yang and Heejin Kim; Editing by Christopher Cushing)
