Korean Conglomerates Deploy AI Across Factories, Ships and Space Projects
South Korean industry leaders announced plans to embed artificial intelligence in manufacturing, shipbuilding and aerospace to boost efficiency and create new capabilities.
Representatives from South Korea's top manufacturers used the Herald Business Forum to outline AI-driven strategies for factories, vessels and space systems. Hyundai Motor Group highlighted the difficulty of automating final assembly and unveiled a "Dark Factory" concept to be tested in Singapore by 2030, where robots will handle repetitive tasks and workers will supervise. Posco Holdings described AI tools that have reduced experimental analysis time dramatically, and LG Electronics said it is training robots on real-time failure-recovery data.
HD Hyundai presented autonomous navigation and digital-twin technologies for shipyards, while Samsung SDI discussed supplying billions of battery cells to Chinese humanoid robot makers and targeting mass production of solid-state batteries for robots by 2027. In aerospace, LIG Nex1 and Korea Aerospace Industries explained AI applications for satellite imagery analysis, cloud-obscured image filtering and integrated crewed-uncrewed drone systems, calling for a national push on radiation-hard AI chips.
Why it matters
AI integration could reshape South Korea's manufacturing, defense and space sectors, influencing global tech competition.
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