LG Electronics to develop hotel-exclusive robots

LG Electronics Inc. will develop hospitality robots jointly with South Korea’s luxury hotel chain operator Josun Hotels & Resorts Co. to meet growing demand for automation in the hospitality industry to improve efficiency and productivity.

The Korean electronics giant announced on Wednesday that it and Josun Hotels & Resorts recently agreed to join hands to develop robots fit to carry out a wide range of hotel services, including housekeeping and butler services.

Using LG’s CLOi CarryBot, initially developed as a logistics robot, they will develop and test hotel service-dedicated robots, optimize the operational process of robotic cart solutions and expand their applications.

They will focus on refining the autonomous driving capability of hospitality robots with artificial intelligence technology, installing the wireless communication system for seamless remote control of robots and advancing robot traffic control technology powered by sensors and big data to ensure the errorless operation of robots working alongside human colleagues in busy hotels, according to LG.

LG’s new hospitality robots will be first dispatched at Josun Hotels & Resorts’ luxury, century-old hotel The Westin Josun Seoul in the capital of Korea, and will then be offered to other hotels.

HIGH DEMAND FOR HOSPITALITY ROBOTS

LG Electronics develops service robots under the CLOi brand, including CLOi ServeBot, CLOi GuideBot and CLOi CarryBot.

Robotics is one of LG’s new growth drivers. Besides the service robot brand CLOi, the company also develops industrial robots led by Robostar Co., which LG acquired in 2018.

It also invested in wearable robotics startup SG Robotics, AI startup Acryl, domestic industrial robot manufacturer Robotics and US robot developer Bossa Nova.

Its decision to develop hospitality robots comes given increasing global demand for automation in the hospitality industry to improve productivity and efficiency.  

After remarkable growth in recent years, the global hospitality robot market is forecast to further grow to $341.91 million between 2022 and 2027 at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 12.13%, according to global tech research group Technavio.

Hotels around the world are actively seeking to automate their services with robots to reduce costs, improve operations and enhance the guest experience.

Robots are available 24 hours a day without needing breaks, freeing up human coworkers for other tasks while they are in charge of more simple delivery and cleaning services. Robots also can provide more personalized services to hotel guests, improving visitors’ hotel experiences.

The outlook for the hotel service robot market looks bright as with advancements in robotic technologies, hotel robots have become more affordable, reliable and capable of performing a wide range of tasks.

LG Electronics’ self-driving hospitality robots at The Westin Josun Seoul will deliver not only food and beverages to guests but also meal ingredients for hotel restaurants and housekeeping materials.

They will be remotely controlled by an LG CLOi Station, according to LG Electronics.

It is the first time for LG Electronics to develop hospitality robots with its logistics robot LG CLOi CarryBot.

Write to Young Chan Song at 0full@hankyung.com


Sookyung Seo edited this article.