HD Hyundai Robotics Co. plans to raise 200 billion won ($144.3 million) in September through convertible preference shares, banking on artificial intelligence upgrades to defend its industrial robot business against surging Chinese competition in humanoid machines.
The South Korean company will issue the shares to state-owned Korea Development Bank and private equity firm KY PE, according to investment banking sources. The funding represents a defensive strategy as Chinese manufacturers like Unitree Robotics and UBTECH dominate the emerging humanoid robot sector, while Korean companies were notably absent from Nvidia’s showcase of 14 leading robots at CES 2025.
HD Hyundai Robotics, spun off from shipbuilding giant HD Hyundai Heavy Industries in 2020, leads global markets in six-axis industrial robots used for welding and assembly. However, the company has been slower than Chinese rivals to develop humanoid robots that can work alongside humans in factories.
The funding will finance AI development through HD Hyundai’s AI Center and advanced sensors for industrial robots. China’s government has targeted humanoid robots as a strategic priority, setting ambitious development goals for 2025 and building a reliable supply chain.
Whether the investment can close the gap remains questionable. Tesla’s Elon Musk recently warned that Chinese companies may dominate rankings 2 through 10 in humanoid robotics, while analysts project the global market could reach $7 trillion by 2050.
