KAIST Professor Shim Hyun-chul's team develops 'PIBOT'

Robot pilot memorizes all aviation charts worldwide

Paper wins best paper award at IEEE Robotics and Automation Magazine

PIBOT operates the instrument panel and control stick aboard an actual aircraft, the KLA-100. [Courtesy of KAIST]
PIBOT operates the instrument panel and control stick aboard an actual aircraft, the KLA-100. [Courtesy of KAIST]

The world's first robot pilot has arrived — one with flying skills to rival the legendary aviator Tom Cruise plays in "Top Gun: Maverick."

KAIST announced Thursday that a paper proposing an autonomous aircraft control framework based on its humanoid pilot robot PIBOT, developed by a research team led by Professor Shim Hyun-chul of the School of Electrical Engineering, has been selected as the best paper in IEEE Robotics and Automation Magazine.

Shim's team was selected in 2021 as a future-challenge defense technology research and development project by the Agency for Defense Development, receiving about 5.7 billion won (approximately $3.73 million) in support. The paper was highly regarded for demonstrating, at an advanced level, physical AI technology that enables a humanoid robot to perform complex tasks — such as piloting an aircraft — in a systematic and adaptive manner driven by AI, going well beyond simple walking or cargo handling.

Humanoid robot technology has been advancing rapidly in terms of physical performance, including acrobatic maneuvers and complex motion. In the industrial sector, however, practical applicability on the factory floor has drawn growing attention as the more critical benchmark.

PIBOT was designed to go beyond simple repetitive tasks or logistics work, acquiring the specialized knowledge required to operate an aircraft and recognizing and responding to real flight situations in real time. The robot has been credited with pointing the way toward a new application category for humanoid robots called "Expert Physical AI."

Unlike human pilots, PIBOT can memorize all aviation charts worldwide, enabling error-free operation. It uses ChatGPT-based technology to retain aircraft operating manuals and emergency procedures, allowing it to respond instantly to abnormal situations. It can also calculate safe flight paths in real time based on the aircraft's current flight status, enabling it to react to emergencies far faster than a human pilot.

The team successfully completed the first phase of research after launching the project in 2021 and has been developing a second-phase pilot robot since 2024, one with a physique and joint structure closer to a human's to better suit actual aircraft operation. The team is also pursuing collaborative research with relevant organizations to expand the technology beyond aircraft to ground vehicles, ships and other types of manned vehicles.

"The humanoid pilot robot works by sitting in the existing cockpit seat and directly operating the various controls, so there is no need to modify the existing aircraft at all," Professor Shim said. "It could be extended not only to vehicles with cockpits — such as automobiles, ships and heavy equipment — but also to environments where humans operate systems according to set procedures, such as factory facilities, nuclear power plants and control panels."


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