Song Si-yong named inaugural head of new unit

Reshuffle comes four months ahead of year-end personnel cycle

One-point personnel move signals push to accelerate robotics business

An LG CLOi robot repeatedly grasps and moves objects to generate and learn from motion data at a data factory under construction at LG Electronics' Yangjae R&D Campus in Seocho-gu, Seoul. [LG Electronics]
An LG CLOi robot repeatedly grasps and moves objects to generate and learn from motion data at a data factory under construction at LG Electronics' Yangjae R&D Campus in Seocho-gu, Seoul. [LG Electronics]

LG Electronics has announced a targeted personnel move, establishing a Robotics Business Center reporting directly to CEO Ryu Jae-cheol and appointing Senior Vice President Song Si-yong as its inaugural head.

The reshuffle is an unusual step taken ahead of the company's regular year-end personnel cycle, which typically takes place in November. LG Electronics said the move is intended to accelerate execution in robotics, a business it is cultivating as a key future growth engine.

The company announced Monday that the organizational restructuring, including the creation of the Robotics Business Center, takes effect Tuesday.

Song, the center's first head, previously served in roles including manufacturing capability enhancement, production system solutions, and smart factory solution center head under the Production Engineering Research Institute.

LG Electronics has consolidated all core capabilities needed for commercialization — from identifying robotics business opportunities to sales, supply chain and manufacturing operations — into the Robotics Business Center, making it a self-contained unit.

A dedicated team for a robot-training data factory will operate under the center, with plans to use high-quality data to advance a Robot Foundation Model. The company is currently building a large-scale robot-training data factory at its Yangjae R&D Campus in Seocho-gu, Seoul, targeting operation by year's end.

LG Electronics has established a Robotics Business Center reporting directly to its CEO and named Senior Vice President Song Si-yong as its inaugural head. [LG Electronics]
LG Electronics has established a Robotics Business Center reporting directly to its CEO and named Senior Vice President Song Si-yong as its inaugural head. [LG Electronics]

LG Electronics has designated this year as the first year of its robotics business. The company expects the restructuring to speed up strategy development and execution while helping to internalize core technologies and secure cost competitiveness.

The new structure is also expected to strengthen collaboration by organically connecting the capabilities of LG Group affiliates such as LG CNS and LG AI Research, and to support the expansion of partnerships with global big-tech firms.

LG Electronics plans to pursue the robot market on three fronts: industrial and commercial robots handled by subsidiaries Robostar and Bear Robotics, alongside home robots developed by the Robotics Business Center.

The company has also moved to commercialize actuators — a core robot component — drawing on more than 60 years of motor technology accumulated through its washing machine and refrigerator businesses. It is pursuing a model of producing actuators domestically and supplying them to external customers.

By building out a data factory for data generation and training, LG Electronics aims to establish itself as a comprehensive robotics solutions company.


joze@heraldcorp.com