Las Vegas: Roh Tae-moon, chief executive officer (CEO) of Samsung Electronics, has said that the company will place its near-term focus in robotics on manufacturing automation, as it takes a phased approach to expanding the business.
"We are prioritising our robot business as a means to automate our manufacturing hubs," Roh, co-CEO of the company, said during a press conference in Las Vegas held on the sidelines of CES 2026.
"Based on the capabilities and experience gained there, we plan to expand into business-to-business and business-to-consumer sectors," he added.
The comment came after Samsung Electronics acquired South Korean robotics startup Rainbow Robotics last year as part of its efforts to advance its robotics technologies, including humanoid robots.
The company previously showcased its ball-shaped smart home robot, Ballie, at CES 2024 and expressed its intention to develop humanoid robots to become a major player in the sector, but Roh said the company is focusing first on applications with clear operational impact, reports Yonhap news agency.
"After our program reaches a certain level, robots will first be deployed at our manufacturing sites and later introduced to the public," Roh said.
Roh also said robotics will be one of Samsung Electronics' core areas for future mergers and acquisitions (M&As).
"We will focus our M&A strategy on four sectors -- heating, ventilation and air conditioning (HVAC), automotive parts, medical technology, and robotics," he said. "We plan to invest in these areas and pursue M&As that contribute to consumers and society through technological innovation."
Samsung Electronics has recently announced several large-scale M&As, including German HVAC firm FlaktGroup Holding GmbH and an automotive technology division of Germany-based ZF Friedrichshafen AG.
To accelerate artificial intelligence (AI)-led innovation, Roh said Samsung Electronics has a plan to embed AI across its entire product lineup.
"AI will be applied to all Galaxy smartphones, premium TVs and Wi-Fi-enabled home appliances," he said. "We aim to ship a total of 400 million units of these products this year."
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