NEWS

As the commercialization of urban autonomous driving services continues to be delayed due to regulatory and legislative shortcomings, South Korean SMEs in the autonomous driving sector are pivoting toward unmanned ground vehicles (UGVs), concentrating their technological development capabilities in this area. These companies possess core technologies for UGVs, such as obstacle detection and navigation systems using lidar, cameras, and radar.

According to industry sources on the 21st, ACEWORKS, a leading autonomous driving tech company, saw a 30% increase in its defense-related UGV sales last year compared to the previous year. While its UGV revenue stood at only KRW 200 million in 2021, it surged to KRW 1.5 billion last year.

ACEWORKS primarily develops and validates software for electric vehicles and autonomous mobility systems. The company currently provides autonomous driving system design and control technology for defense UGVs under development by Korean defense contractors. These UGV technologies are not limited to defense. In February, ACEWORKS completed a government project titled “Development of Emergency Vehicle Passage Support Services Based on Autonomous Driving,” where it demonstrated its capabilities by producing an autonomous ambulance for emergency patient transport.

“Our team has developed seven generations of autonomous vehicles since 2010, acquiring all the core technologies needed for autonomous systems,” said ACEWORKS CEO Park Seung-beom. “As the UGV market continues to grow, we plan to place greater focus on this business area.”

ThorDrive, a startup that gained attention in November 2015 for developing the autonomous taxi “Snuber” on the Seoul National University campus, has also shifted its focus to UGVs. Although the company signed a pilot operation agreement with Emart in 2019 and launched the country’s first urban autonomous delivery service, it could not overcome the regulatory barriers to commercialization. As a result, ThorDrive turned to UGVs, which allow for maximizing autonomous driving technologies within controlled environments. The company began pilot testing of Korea’s first UGV for towing passenger luggage and air cargo at airports this year, with plans for commercialization by 2026.

Mobility motion control manufacturer Samhyun is also accelerating its UGV market entry by acquiring AI autonomous driving firm CaseLab. CaseLab is gaining attention in the industrial robotics sector, with core technologies in autonomous forklifts, heavy-duty transport robots, and intelligent sensors. Industry watchers interpret Samhyun’s acquisition as a strategic move to dominate the defense UGV market. In April, Samhyun unveiled its multipurpose UGV "HOPLON," signaling its commitment to the unmanned defense sector.

Meanwhile, AI platform company Mind AI is applying its VLM (very large multimodal model)-based autonomous driving technology to the robots of Gore Robotics to enter the global construction robotics market.

The industry’s growing focus on UGVs stems from the unclear business model for autonomous vehicles like robotaxis in Korea. While the U.S. and China have made significant progress in commercializing such services, Korea remains stuck in pilot testing phases due to regulatory and legislative gaps. According to Statista, Korea's autonomous vehicle market was valued at USD 500 million last year and is expected to reach only USD 700 million by 2026. In contrast, China’s market—heavily supported by government funding—is projected to grow from USD 3.3 billion to USD 4.9 billion, while the U.S. market is expected to grow by 30% from USD 9.7 billion to USD 12.7 billion over the same period.

UGVs, in particular, have limitless potential for growth as their applications expand across defense, logistics, agriculture, and disaster response. According to market research firm Global Information, the global UGV market is projected to grow from KRW 6.63 trillion in 2025 to KRW 19.04 trillion by 2035—a 192% surge.

“UGVs are ideal for hazardous environments where human operation is risky,” said one industry official. “Defense UGVs, in particular, are directly tied to national security, making them one of the most promising segments in the market.”

Source: Park Woo-in, SeDaily wipark@sedaily.com
URL: https://www.sedaily.com/NewsView/2GSVUHXK53