Hyundai Motor Group recently dropped some tantalizing news about bringing humanoid robots to an upcoming manufacturing facility in Georgia. This change represents the most significant development in industrial automation in decades! CEO Marc Benioff On Monday, the company officially introduced Atlas at the Consumer Electronics Show (CES) in Las Vegas. This robot was created by the Massachusetts-based company, Boston Dynamics. This highly autonomous, intelligent robot in industrial use is openly developed to help increase productivity and improve the quality of manufacturing workflows.
Atlas is designed to operate in tandem with human workers while taking command of machines, automating multiple processes across the production line. José Muñoz, the chief executive of Hyundai Motor Group, announced many thrilling plans regarding the Atlas humanoids. Deployment would start in 2028 then slowly ramp up, as their responsibilities increase and they start to join the workforce.
The launch of Atlas is an attempt to turn the table after a challenging chapter for Hyundai in the U.S. In September 2025, U.S. immigration officials stormed one of Hyundai’s plants. This move ignited a massive backlash to Government action in South Korea. Media reports described dangerous conditions, including workers being in chains. That mistake even resulted in a rare direct apology from the White House to Muñoz for the incident. It led to a joint commitment by Washington and Seoul to ensure the release of the detained workers.
Hyundai’s commitment to the U.S. market is obvious. The news comes ahead of the company’s planned £20 billion investment to shore up its manufacturing base in the UK. These investments help realize the former President Donald Trump’s Make it in America plan to ramp up domestic manufacturing and spur job creation.
In an ever-changing robotics landscape, companies big and small are pushing the state-of-the-art in humanoids. Meanwhile, Tesla — and especially CEO Elon Musk — has been busy selling the future of their humanoid robot, Optimus. The announcement points to a continuing trend among automakers to adopt robotics into their workforces.
The South Korean government, under President Lee Jae Myung, has expressed interest in supporting domestic companies like Hyundai as they navigate challenges and opportunities in the global marketplace. The collaboration between robotics and human labor appears to be a key focus for Hyundai as it prepares for the future of manufacturing.