Speaking during the automaker’s investor day, Hyundai CEO José Muñoz revealed that the company is exploring plans to leverage its franchised dealer network to retail advanced robots built by Boston Dynamics, as per a report by a report by Business Insider. Hyundai dealerships in your neighborhood may eventually showcase and sell humanoid and quadruped robots alongside cars. Muñoz added that the automaker’s financial arm, Hyundai Capital, is assessing whether to offer consumer financing programs for robotics in the same way it finances vehicle purchases.
Notably, Hyundai utilises Spot across its manufacturing facilities for predictive inspections, including checking vehicle exteriors within the paint and weld shops at its Georgia Metaplant, where the company manufactures the Ioniq 5 and Ioniq 9 electric vehicles. The next major milestone centres on Atlas, Boston Dynamics’ flagship humanoid robot equipped with a 180-degree swiveling torso. Muñoz confirmed that Hyundai is preparing to begin mass production of the humanoid model.
Boston Dynamics already markets commercial systems such as Spot, a four-legged robotic platform used for industrial surveying and maintenance, and Stretch, a wheeled, single-armed unit built to unload cargo from shipping containers and freight trucks.
Hyundai races to deploy humanoid hardware
Similarly, Toyota and Agility Robotics have finalised a deployment agreement to integrate its bipedal robots into the carmakers’ vehicle manufacturing facilities in Canada. Mercedes-Benz has begun testing Apptronik’s Apollo humanoid across its plants to deliver component bins and conduct parts inspections. Tesla is building out dedicated assembly lines for its Optimus humanoid inside its Fremont, California plant.