Key Takeaways
- 8 of China's top 10 humanoid robot makers are building certification and distribution networks in Korea
- Chinese firms move to capture the Korean market amid a gap in domestic humanoid robots
- Korean government to invest KRW 3.1 trillion by 2027; Chinese robots already piloted at auto parts plants
- Time to assess humanoid demand in processes that require greater work flexibility
Chinese humanoid robots have begun actual deployment at Korean auto parts factories and cafes, with 8 of China's top 10 manufacturers having completed or in progress of obtaining Korean certifications, filing trademarks, or establishing distribution partnerships.
What Was Confirmed
According to an October 24, 2026 report by the South China Morning Post (SCMP), UBTech Robotics formalized plans in July to pilot humanoid robots at a parts production facility together with its domestic robot automation partner Deoksan JM Robotics and Ajin Industrial, a mid-sized firm specializing in auto body parts. Sean Qin, UBTech's head of overseas commercial robotics, said the company has supplied over 10,000 robots to Korea's entertainment and education sectors since entering the market in 2019, and that the 'Galaxy Robot Park' in Seoul completed delivery of UBTech's humanoid 'U1' (1.68m tall, costing roughly RMB 170,000) last month.
Agibot demonstrated beverage-serving, table-clearing, and seat-rearranging robots in collaboration with Korean coffee franchise Hollys at the World Robot Conference (WRC) in Beijing last August, and is currently undergoing Korea's KC radio frequency certification process, with plans to begin pilots at food and beverage outlets starting in Q4 this year. According to China's General Administration of Customs, Korea ranked third globally—after the US and Japan—as an importer of China's intelligent bionic robots from January to September this year, with export value reaching USD 19.99 million (approximately KRW 27 billion), accounting for 9.7% of China's total exports in the category.
How Is the Korean Government Responding?
The Korean government has committed to investing KRW 3.1 trillion (approximately USD 2.3 billion) in physical AI by 2027. The Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy allocated KRW 1.1 trillion this year alone through its 'AI Autonomous Manufacturing (M.AX) Alliance,' aiming to build over 500 AI-powered factories by 2030. In response, Samsung Electronics is reportedly considering unveiling a bipedal robot at CES in early 2027, Hyundai Motor Group is preparing to deploy Boston Dynamics' Atlas on manufacturing floors, LG Electronics is advancing data factory-based robot training, and Doosan Robotics is developing control software in partnership with NVIDIA.
At the October 6 National Assembly audit session of the Science, ICT, Broadcasting and Communications Committee, Rep. Lee Jung-heon of the Democratic Party brought in robots from China's Unitree and Zhiyuan for a live demonstration while criticizing the government's countermeasures, and Rep. Ahn Cheol-soo of the People Power Party pointed out that potential data leakage risks and security inspections for these robots remained unverified. Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Science and ICT Bae Kyung-hoon, speaking at 'Physical AI Tech Week,' noted that China is already accumulating vast amounts of physical data from industrial sites and urged bold investment from private companies.
Implications for Korean Enterprise AX
Ethan Qi, Associate Director at Counterpoint Research, noted that Chinese companies are exploiting the current absence of a large-scale, commercially available domestic humanoid robot in Korea. The fact that Chinese robots—as in UBTech's collaboration with Ajin Industrial—have reached the proof-of-concept (PoC) stage on manufacturing lines signals genuine demand for humanoids to assist workers in complex processes. Manufacturers already operating robot arms and AMRs should first identify which processes are bottlenecked by a lack of work flexibility before considering humanoid adoption.
Park Young-hoon, Director of KOTRA's Shenzhen Trade Center, suggested that while Korean companies compete technologically with Chinese tech firms, they should also pragmatically leverage Shenzhen's robotics supply chain for parts procurement and faster mass production. Given that Chinese players currently lead in hardware cost and production speed, now is the time to compare whether in-house development or external supply chain utilization better fits each company's production line conditions.