Samsung Electronics announced that it will become the largest shareholder in Rainbow Robotics and accelerate future robot development like humanoid robots. Samsung first acquired a 14.7% stake in the Korean firm in 2023 with an investment of KRW 86.8 billion and has exercised a call option to increase its stake to 35%. Rainbow Robotics will be incorporated as a subsidiary under Samsung Electronics’ consolidated financial statements. To increase the stake in Rainbow, it appears that Samsung spent over 267 billion won (over $180 million), as revealed in a regulatory filing.
With the collaboration with Rainbow Robotics, Samsung will strengthen its foundation in developing advanced robot technology. Rainbow Robotics was founded in 2011 by researchers from the Korea Advanced Institute of Science & Technology’s (KAIST) Humanoid Robot Research Center, who developed the first two-legged walking robot, “Hubo,” in Korea.
By integrating Samsung Electronics’ AI and software technology with Rainbow Robotics’ robotics technology, the collaboration plans to accelerate the development of intelligent advanced humanoids.
Samsung will also form a synergy council with Rainbow Robotics to enhance its leadership in the global advanced robot business. The council is expected to serve as a bridge to foster the growth of both companies by developing future robot technologies and core business strategies and identifying and assessing market demand.
With the collaboration, Samsung plans to utilize Rainbow Robotics’ collaborative robots, dual-arm mobile manipulators, and autonomous mobile robots for manufacturing and logistics automation tasks. And these robots can significantly improve their work capabilities by learning and analyzing situational data and environmental variables that occur in the field through AI algorithms. Rainbow Robotics will enter overseas markets using Samsung’s global sales infrastructure.
Samsung also established a Future Robotics Office reporting directly to the CEO. And the office will focus on developing future robots, including humanoid robots, aiming to secure competitiveness in new technologies for future robots that will advance current paradigms and transform them into a key growth engine.
Dr. Jun-Ho Oh, a founding member of Rainbow Robotics and an honorary professor at KAIST, will be an advisor to Samsung and head of the Future Robotics Office after retiring from Rainbow Robotics. And Dr. Oh will provide robotics technology and business expertise to Samsung’s future robot development from his deep experience in industry-academia collaboration.
