Establishing a Collaboration Model Between Workers and Humanoid Robots to Expand Physical AI to Heavy and Heavy Industries

POSCO Group is accelerating the adoption of physical AI in manufacturing sites by pursuing a project to apply humanoid robots to steel product logistics management.

On the 3rd, POSCO Group signed an MOU at the POSCO DX Pangyo headquarters with representatives from four companies: POSCO, POSCO DX, POSCO Investment, and Persona AI, to implement industrial humanoid robots in the field.

Under the agreement, POSCO will identify potential work sites at its steelworks and assess their feasibility. POSCO DX will design and build a robot automation system and jointly develop a steelworks-specific model. POSCO Investment will support the implementation of a Proof of Concept (PoC), a small-scale preliminary test of ideas and technologies to determine their practical feasibility. Persona AI will be responsible for the development and implementation of a humanoid robot platform tailored to the steelworks industrial environment.

POSCO Group and Persona AI have agreed to begin testing Persona AI’s humanoid robot business in the logistics management of steel coils produced at the steelworks in February. Unloading rolled coils weighing tens of tons requires crane operation. The humanoid robot will collaborate with field workers to attach the crane belt to the coils. This is expected to be an example of human-robot collaboration creating a safer work environment.

Logistics work involving handling coils weighing 20 to 40 tons carries a high risk of accidents and the potential for musculoskeletal disorders due to repetitive tasks. The deployment of humanoid robots is expected to address these issues. Since last year, POSCO Group has been considering the introduction of humanoid robots in terminal logistics processes, such as transportation and material preparation, considering the characteristics of heavy construction sites. If this demonstration process confirms the mechanical safety and collaboration potential of humanoid robots with workers, the group plans to expand their deployment and apply them to various logistics sites.

Persona AI is a US-based humanoid robot startup founded in 2024 by renowned robotics engineers and industry experts. Prior to this agreement, POSCO Group invested a total of $3 million in Persona AI last year. Combining NASA’s robotic hand technology with its own precision control technology, Persona AI is developing industrial humanoid robots capable of everything from assembling fine components to handling heavy loads.

To respond promptly to the industrial paradigm shift, including AX, POSCO Group plans to expand its Intelligent Factory initiative across its manufacturing sites and create a safe and comfortable, technology-based workplace.

▲ (From the second from the left in the front row, moving right) Kyuho Chung, Head of POSCO DX Strategy Office; Minseok Shim, President & CEO of POSCO DX; Nicolaus Radford, CEO of Persona AI; Geunhwan Kim, President of POSCO Venture Capital, along with business representatives, pose for a commemorative photo after signing a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) at POSCO DX’s Pangyo office for the on-site application of industrial humanoid robots.