Didon Robotics, an industrial physical artificial intelligence company, said on the 20th that it has hired Jung Byung-chan, former chief executive of Hanwha Robotics, as its chief product officer.
At Hanwha Robotics, Jung led the development of next-generation collaborative robots and the commercialization of mobile robots. Before becoming chief executive in July 2024, he served as head of the robot business team and the robot technology team in Hanwha's machinery and power systems divisions, then oversaw technology as chief technology officer of Hanwha Robotics. During his tenure as chief executive, he expanded the company's robot lineup and its sales networks at home and abroad.
With the appointment, Didon Robotics plans to move the physical AI it is developing beyond field validation and into mass production. At Didon Robotics, Jung will be responsible for commercializing the quadruped robot Didon Spider, as well as the bipedal platforms Didon Walker and Didon Humanoid.
Didon Robotics was co-founded in March 2024 by four researchers from the Humanoid Robot Research Center at the Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology (KAIST). The company developed a magnetic-footed walking robot to address labor shortages in the shipbuilding industry. It is currently conducting welding demonstrations of Spider at South Korea's three largest shipyards and has signed its first export contract with a European customer.
The company plans to begin mass production of Didon Spider in 2027 and to deploy about 250 units at industrial sites in 2028. It will also start mass production of humanoids that year. By 2030, it aims to expand beyond shipyards into construction and ship operations and to deploy several thousand units or more.
"We saw that now, as Didon Robotics' robots are beginning to be used in the field, is the most important time for commercialization," Jung said. "We will reflect customer requirements in our products and secure safety and reliability, while building mass production, quality and customer support systems so that the three robots can be used reliably at more industrial sites."
"Didon Robotics is now moving past the stage of proving its technology and into mass production," said Kim Jun-ha, co-founder and chief executive of Didon Robotics. "Together with CPO Jung Byung-chan, who has led robots from development through launch, we will complete Spider, Walker and the humanoid as products that customers can trust and use in the field."
