South Korean Humanoid Robots in 2026: Models, Makers and Specs Compared

AI Worker ranks first because it is the Korean humanoid already doing daily work at a customer site. Since September 2026, two units have worked in live operations at the Olive Young distribution center in Yongin, near Seoul, putting cushioning into shipping boxes, after earlier packing tests with CJ Logistics. ROBOTIS calls it a semi-humanoid: a human-like upper body with two 7-joint arms and dexterous hands sits on a wheeled base that rolls in any direction at up to 1.5 m/s. It learns jobs by copying people, who first steer it remotely to show each task. Its software, simulation models and training data are open source, so customers are not locked in. The limits are that it has no legs and needs fresh human demonstrations for every new job. It suits warehouses and factories with repetitive packing and assembly work.

IGRIS-C ranks second because it is a walking humanoid that companies are already paying for. ROBROS, a Seoul startup founded in 2020, has sold 18 units, and the robot has been piloted at Lotte Global Logistics, with work under way to make it tougher for the dust of shipyards and the chemicals of chip plants. Universities including Kwangwoon, Kyung Hee and Sogang use it for teaching and research. It stands 154 cm tall, weighs 56 kg and lifts 3 kg in each hand. ROBROS builds its own joints, control software and AI, and in July 2026 the robot pulled off a backflip and a windmill spin, a tough test of balance. Walking is trained in simulation, while hand skills are taught by people steering it. Its limits are a light load and a modest walking pace. It suits logistics, factory and research teams that need a robot on two legs.

Friday ranks third because its maker has the funding and a production plan to put it in factories soon. Holiday Robotics closed a Series A of $103.4 million in July 2026, the largest ever raised by a Korean startup, and plans a commercial launch in the second half of 2026, with capacity for 100 units this year and 1,000 a year in 2027. The wheeled robot stands 176 cm tall, weighs 115 kg and rolls at up to 1.9 m/s. Its hands carry tactile sensors that feel forces as small as 0.05 newtons, enough to handle delicate parts, and its batteries can be swapped while it keeps working. Trials with car, chip and logistics companies are under way but confidential, so there is no public customer yet. The company's founder previously built Sualab, an industrial AI vision firm. It suits manufacturers with repetitive bench and line work.

AI Sapiens K0 ranks fourth because it is the most open humanoid any Korean company has released, so anyone can study, copy or change it. ROBOTIS unveiled it in April 2026 and has published its parts list, CAD drawings, source code and simulation files, including the balance and walking code that many makers keep secret. In August 2026 it released the software under a licence with few limits on commercial use, plus tools for moving skills trained in simulation onto the real robot. The robot is 130 cm tall, weighs 34 kg and has 23 degrees of freedom, meaning 23 separate joints, each driven by an in-house Dynamixel-Q motor. Each arm handles 3 kg. It is a research tool rather than a worker, and its small frame limits what it can carry. It suits universities, students and startups that want a humanoid they fully control.

ALLEX ranks fifth because its maker has set a date to start selling it, though buyers will get a research version first. WIRobotics plans to sell ALLEX to AI companies, large tech firms and research institutes from the fourth quarter of 2026, with capacity for more than 300 units a year by the end of 2027. The robot is built around touch. Its hands press with up to 40 newtons at the fingertip, yet it senses forces as light as 100 gram-force without skin sensors, so it can shake a hand without crushing it. Today it is an upper body on a stand with no legs or wheels, and a wheeled Mobile ALLEX is planned. WIRobotics also makes WIM, a walking-assist wearable that has passed 3,000 units sold, which gives it years of data on how people move. It suits labs studying safe, gentle handling.

ALICE 4 ranks sixth because it brings a rare hardware idea to a full-size humanoid, but its maker has not named a customer for it yet. AEI Robot, a 2018 spin-off from a robotics lab at Hanyang University ERICA, moves the robot's joints with its own linear actuators, motors that push and pull in a straight line like a muscle instead of turning through a gearbox. The company says this gives finer force control, quieter motion and simpler manufacturing. ALICE 4 stands 160 cm tall, weighs 45 kg and has 41 degrees of freedom, with an NVIDIA Jetson Orin NX computer on board. AEI Robot showed the ALICE series at CES 2026 and handles requests through direct inquiry. The team's roots are in robot soccer: an earlier ALICE played in the RoboCup humanoid league. It suits research teams and companies that want to test a different kind of robot muscle.

CloiD ranks seventh because it comes from the biggest Korean brand on this list, but it is still a demonstrator with no release date. LG Electronics unveiled it at CES 2026 as part of its Zero Labor Home idea, a home where robots take over chores. It has a wheeled base, a torso that adjusts its height between 105 and 143 cm, and two arms with 7 degrees of freedom each, ending in five-finger hands. Its head works as an AI hub with cameras, a display, speakers and voice control, and it links to LG's connected appliances. LG pitches it for jobs such as folding laundry, loading the dishwasher and organizing the fridge. LG has not said when, where or for whom it will become available. It suits households and appliance fans who want to follow where LG's home robots are heading.

P-73 ranks eighth because it is the newest walking humanoid on this list and is still a prototype. Blue Robin was spun out of the DYROS lab at Seoul National University in 2022, building on more than ten years of research on two-legged walking and two-armed handling, and the same team reached the finals of the ANA Avatar XPRIZE that year. The P-73 prototype launched in December 2025. It stands 173 cm tall, weighs 75 kg and has 32 degrees of freedom. It can walk using either model-based control or learned policies, and its arms can copy a remote operator's motions in real time. The Blue Robin Hand has four fingers and can lift 10 kg. There is no public customer yet. It suits research partners and care robotics teams willing to work with an early prototype.