A rapid development of AI technologies is unleashing new potentials for robots as hardware robots can help realize AI features that previously existed only in software domain, bringing them into industrial sites and service sectors.

Regardless of their integration with AI, robot usage is expanding across various sectors, including articulated robots in industrial fields, service robots assisting customers in restaurants, robot vacuum cleaners for households.

Following this trend, technology for the stable supply of high-performance energy has become a key factor determining robot performance. In particular, the operating efficiency and overall performance of mobile robots are largely determined by their batteries. To maximize runtime and achieve high performance, batteries with high output and high capacity are essential.

The current robot market is still in its early stages, with most robots using cylindrical batteries for micro-mobility applications. This is due to the limited battery space available in robots, which makes smaller cell sizes advantageous. 

SAMSUNG SDI is developing high-performance batteries that can increase output and usage time by achieving high energy density even within limited spaces. This includes researching ways to maximize battery efficiency through the development of high-capacity materials and design optimization.

In addition, SAMSUNG SDI signed an MOU with Hyundai Motor Group and Kia in February to jointly develop batteries specifically for robots, aiming to create cells optimized for robotic applications. The two parties previously unveiled a service robot, DAL-e, from the Robotics LAB of Hyundai Motor Group and Kia, at the “InterBattery 2025,” equipped with SAMSUNG SDI’s cylindrical batteries.

[A service robot, DAL-e, from the Robotics LAB of Hyundai Motor Group and Kia, equipped with SAMSUNG SDI’s batteries]

SAMSUNG SDI plans to continue research and development to take the lead in the robotics market.