Hyundai Motor Group Details Massive KRW 125.2 Trillion Investment, Targeting Robotics and ''Physical AI'' Infrastructure

Hyundai Motor Group (HMG) has announced a massive domestic investment plan, committing KRW 125.2 trillion (approx. $92.7 billion USD) over the next five years, from 2026 to 2030. While the funds cover R&D, EV production, and capital expenditures, a significant KRW 50.5 trillion is earmarked for "future business," with a clear, strategic focus on building a comprehensive ecosystem for AI and robotics.

This plan moves beyond just vehicle electrification and software-defined vehicles (SDVs). HMG is detailing concrete plans to build the core infrastructure for what it calls "Physical AI"—the technology powering autonomous vehicles and, crucially, intelligent robots.

Building the "Physical AI" Pipeline

According to the company's announcement, the investment includes several key initiatives aimed at creating a complete value chain for robotics development and deployment:

• AI Data Center: A new high-power data center is planned to process the massive petabyte-scale datasets required to train AI models for both autonomous driving and physical robots.
• Physical AI Application Center: HMG is establishing a dedicated testbed to verify the safety, reliability, and completeness of robots trained on this data before they are deployed in real-world industrial settings.
• Robotics Manufacturing and Foundry: In one of the plan's most significant moves, HMG will build a new facility for in-house production of complete robotics systems. The group also plans to offer "foundry services" to small and medium-sized enterprises that lack their own manufacturing expertise.

This strategy extends to HMG's vast supply chain. The company stated it will actively support R&D from its existing automotive parts suppliers to help them pivot into the robotics components sector, aiming to localize key parts and build a new high-value export industry.

An Ecosystem for Boston Dynamics and Beyond

This massive domestic investment in robotics infrastructure builds upon HMG's 2021 acquisition of Boston Dynamics. Hyundai is already slated to be the first and largest customer for the new all-electric Atlas humanoid, which will be piloted in its own manufacturing plants.

The new plan suggests a long-term strategy to leverage HMG's manufacturing prowess to scale the production of Atlas and other future robots—a capability that has historically been a bottleneck for robotics firms focused on R&D.

This move by Hyundai Motor Group also means that both major branches of the Hyundai conglomerate are now all-in on robotics. This investment is separate from the ambitions of HD Hyundai (heavy industry and shipbuilding), which has its own high-profile partnership with humanoid startup Persona AI to deploy robots in its shipyards.

With this KRW 125.2 trillion commitment, Hyundai Motor Group is signaling a clear and funded strategy to transition from a traditional automaker into a diversified technology giant where robotics and "physical AI" are central to its future.