LG Electronics CEO Ryu Jaecheol: "Unrivaled Competitiveness in Actuators... Aiming to Become a Total Solution Provider by 2030"

Ryu Jaecheol, CEO of LG Electronics, has identified the actuator sector-considered the "muscle" of robots-as the core area where LG Electronics can excel.

LG Electronics CEO Jaechul Ryu is speaking at a press conference held on January 7 (local time) at the Las Vegas Convention Center (LVCC) in Nevada, USA. Photo by Yonhap News

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On April 23, through a post on his LinkedIn, CEO Ryu emphasized, "Robotics will be the clearest gateway for artificial intelligence (AI) to permeate our daily lives." He noted, "Morgan Stanley projects that the robotics market will reach 5 trillion dollars by 2050, which is about twice the size of today's global automotive industry. As a result, the focus is shifting toward core components, especially actuators."

CEO Ryu cited three reasons why LG Electronics can stand out in the actuator market: scale, vertical integration, and efficiency. He explained, "For nearly 70 years, LG Electronics has built trusted manufacturing and design capabilities and robust product durability. We now have the infrastructure to manufacture 45 million motors annually at seven production bases across five countries." He further added that the company not only designs and produces motors and drivers in-house but is also pursuing the internalization of gear reducers, thereby ensuring technological security and flexible responsiveness.

He also stressed that technologies proven in the home appliance business, such as high-efficiency inverters, can be applied to robotics. CEO Ryu stated, "Regenerative braking technology based on our specialized inverter expertise-essentially energy harvesting-returns about 10% of the energy that could be lost during robot operation back to the battery, enhancing battery efficiency." He added, "This component technology forms the foundation for LG Electronics’ robotics parts brand, AXIUM." AXIUM is an all-in-one modular platform that enables efficient and reliable production of robot joints and accelerates development speed.

A concrete roadmap for growing into a global robot solutions company was also presented. LG Electronics plans to complete mass production capability for actuators within this year and apply them first to the intelligent home robot, LG CLOi, to secure onsite references. Starting in 2027, the company aims to supply core components to global partners and, by 2030, expand into the industrial high-torque segment, aspiring to provide total actuator solutions worldwide.

CEO Ryu underscored, "Robots and the actuators that power them will become an essential part of our daily lives," adding, "Addressing this is not just a business opportunity, but a process of meeting the evolving needs of our customers."

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