South Korea is rapidly emerging as a global leader in humanoid robotics, driven by innovations like the award‑winning Hubo robot and care-focused models such as Hyodol. Backed by a national strategy and hundreds of millions in investment, the country's M.AX Humanoid Alliance aims to create a unified value chain and achieve the mass production of humanoid robots by 2029.

With strong competition from China and the US, major moves like Hyundai's acquisition of Boston Dynamics highlight South Korea's ambition to dominate the humanoid, autonomous vehicle, and smart‑factory sectors. As robots like Boston Dynamics' electric Atlas advance toward real industrial use, questions about safety, home integration, and the future of human labor intensify, making this global humanoid race more competitive than ever.

 

This video summary was created by AI from the original DW script. It was edited by a journalist before publication.