LG's CEO pledges more focus on robotics during company's CES 2026 event

LG Electronics CEO Lyu Jae-cheol unveiled his first major business strategy since taking office, pledging to expand the company’s robotics business in earnest.

LG Electronics CEO Lyu Jae-cheol speaks at a press conference held at the Las Vegas Convention Center during CES 2026 on Jan. 7. [NEWS1]

LG Electronics CEO Lyu Jae-cheol unveiled his first major business strategy since taking office, pledging to expand the company’s robotics business in earnest.

“As the new CEO taking over the baton of growth and transformation, I feel a tremendous sense of responsibility,” Lyu told reporters during a press conference held Wednesday at the Las Vegas Convention Center. “I will break away from inertia and establish a growth model grounded in profitability through strong execution.”

Lyu was appointed CEO of LG Electronics this year. On Wednesday, he laid out three key strategic themes: building fundamental competitiveness, shifting to a high-performance portfolio and achieving AI transformation, or AX.

“AI is bringing about rapid change unlike anything we’ve seen before,” he said. “We will strengthen our competitiveness in quality, cost and delivery — the fundamentals of our business — to gain an edge over fast-moving rivals.”

As the path to sustainable development, the new CEO pointed to qualitative growth. The company aims to rapidly restructure its portfolio around business-to-business operations, particularly automotive electronics and HVAC, as well as subscription-based services. These areas accounted for 29 percent of total sales in 2021 and had grown to 45 percent by the second half of last year.

Lyu expressed confidence in the television sector, where Chinese manufacturers have become increasingly aggressive.

LG Electronics CEO Lyu Jae-cheol speaks at the company's LG World Premiere held in Las Vegas ahead of CES 2026 on Jan. 5. [YONHAP]

“I saw more opportunities than threats for LG,” he said, when asked about his impressions after visiting competitors’ booths, including that of Samsung Electronics. At CES, LG debuted its premium Micro RGB LCD TV lineup for the first time, signaling its intent to cement leadership in the premium TV market not only through OLED, but also in LCD technology.

Lyu also highlighted robotics as a central vision for LG’s future. “LG’s AI begins at home,” he said. “Starting next year, we will fully launch our household robotics business.” At CES, LG showcased “CloiD,” a robot designed to assist with household chores, drawing attention from attendees.

“The current operating speed is still far from where we want it to be, but we expect it to reach near-human levels within a few months,” Lyu said. “By next year, we believe it will be ready to prove its performance in real homes, outside the lab.”

This article was originally written in Korean and translated by a bilingual reporter with the help of generative AI tools. It was then edited by a native English-speaking editor. All AI-assisted translations are reviewed and refined by our newsroom. BY LEE GA-RAM [yoon.soyeon@joongang.co.kr]