Samsung to Supply Memory for Hyundai's Atlas Robot

The recent top-level meeting between Samsung and Hyundai Motor Group highlights a strategic focus for both companies in the emerging physical AI sector. A primary area of discussion was the supply of advanced memory for Hyundai's Atlas humanoid robot. Market research firm Counterpoint Research projects a significant surge in demand for humanoid robot DRAM, forecasting a 20-fold increase to 172,000 terabits by 2030.

For Hyundai, which plans to mass-produce 30,000 Atlas units annually in the U.S. starting in 2028, securing advanced memory proactively through Samsung is presented as crucial, given the anticipated scarcity. Samsung aims to establish an early lead in a memory market expanding beyond traditional AI data centers into robotics. Its existing collaboration with Nvidia on the Jetson Thor robot chip, which will serve as Atlas's brain, and its own humanoid robot development efforts support this objective.

Beyond DRAM, the collaboration extends to other critical components and technologies. Samsung Electro-Mechanics' chances of supplying camera modules for Atlas have grown, following its initial mass production for humanoid robots. Samsung SDI is also set to supply batteries for Atlas, building on its existing role with the Genesis GV90. Further discussions involve automotive Magnetoresistive RAM (MRAM), a memory type noted for its resilience to high temperatures and shocks, and Samsung Foundry's potential production of an 8-nanometer-class self-driving chip developed by Hyundai.