KT has expressed its ambition to accelerate digital innovation in manufacturing industries, starting with intelligent service robots, through a strategic partnership with Hyundai Heavy Industries Group.
KT announced on June 16 that it signed a business cooperation contract with Hyundai Robotics for strategic partnership and an investment contract worth 50 billion won (41.2 million U.S. dollars) at KT Gwanghwamun Building East in Jongno-gu, Seoul.
This will give KT a 10 percent stake in Hyundai Robotics. It is meaningful in that it is the first strategic investment since President Gu Hyeon-mo took office as CEO of KT.
Under the deal, KT and Hyundai Robotics will cooperate in developing intelligent service robots, researching autonomous driving technologies, and smart factory fields. KT is in charge of developing and applying intelligent service robots and software related to autonomous driving technologies, while Hyundai Robotics is in charge of developing and producing hardware respectively.
It will jointly develop food and beverage (F&B) serving robots for restaurants as well as hotels and cleaning and patrolling robots equipped with cleaning and security functions. In addition, the company plans to develop a franchise cooperative robot for small factories and large stores and enter the service robot market following industrial robots.
In the field of smart factory, KT provides telecommunication technology, cloud, ICT solutions, and security-related combined products. Hyundai Robotics has decided to supply robots and solutions.
The combination of KT's platform for smart factory (5G Factory Makers) and Hyundai Robotics' Hyundai robot management system (HRMS) is expected to further improve the process analysis, production management, and foreground conservation of smart factory. In addition, the two companies will promote cooperation in smart hospitals and smart logistics.
KT also signed a business cooperation agreement with Hyundai Heavy Industries to jointly promote smart solutions and digital innovation. Major executives of KT and Hyundai Heavy Industries Group attended the signing ceremony, including KT CEO Koo Hyun-mo, Hyundai Heavy Industries Holdings Vice President Jung Ki-sun, and Hyundai Robotics CEO Seo Yoo-sung.
KT and Hyundai Heavy Industries Holdings have decided to set up a cooperative committee involving KT CEO Koo Hyun-mo and Hyundai Heavy Industries Holdings Vice President Jung Ki-sun to jointly promote smart solutions, digital innovation, AI and ICT businesses. The committee will discuss business cooperation between KT and affiliates of Hyundai Heavy Industries Group.
"Based on KT's 5G and AI capabilities, we will contribute to strengthening the competitiveness of South Korea's industries and lead innovation of manufacturing industries by working with Hyundai Heavy Industries Group," said Koo Hyun-mo, CEO of KT. "KT will make efforts to spread 'digital innovation' in various fields, starting with Hyundai Heavy Industries Group."
Meanwhile, both KT and Hyundai Robotics participated in the "AI One Team," which was launched in February this year with the aim of making South Korea the world's No. 1 country. In April, the company introduced the second-generation GiGA Genie Hotel Robot, which has improved design and performance in partnership with KT and Hyundai Robotics, to Novotel Ambassador Seoul Dongdaemun Hotel & Residence. In May, KT and Hyundai Engineering & Construction Machinery signed a MOU to jointly develop and commercialize 5G smart construction machinery and industrial vehicle platforms.
