Samsung Launches RX Business Division, Bets Big on Physical AI

*Editor's Note: 'AI PRISM' (Personalized Report & Insight Summarizing Media) is an 'AI-based personalized news recommendation and summary service' developed with support from the Korea Press Foundation. It selects and provides six customized news items by reader type.

1. Control Tower Built to Lead '60 Trillion Won Physical AI' Investment...Further M&A Signaled

- Key Summary: Samsung Electronics has established a dedicated robotics business organization, the 'RX (Robotics eXperience) Business Division.' Launched as an organization reporting directly to Roh Tae-moon, head of Samsung Electronics' Device eXperience (DX) Division and representative director, it is characterized by integrating hardware, AI, and software capabilities. According to Global Market Research, the global robotics market is expected to grow from 59.7 billion dollars (about 88 trillion won) this year to 257.5 billion dollars (about 380 trillion won) in 2035. Accordingly, Samsung Electronics plans to build a data factory at its Gumi plant in connection with a 60 trillion won physical AI innovation cluster being developed in the Yeongnam region, and to use affiliate infrastructure as a stage for robot learning.

2. [Exclusive] Chasm 'Over'...LG Energy Solution Restarts Halted U.S. EV Battery Plant

- Key Summary: LG Energy Solution is restarting its Ultium Cells Plant 1 in Ohio, U.S., which had halted operations. The plant, jointly established with GM, closed in January due to a sharp drop in EV demand, and about 850 temporarily laid-off employees will return to work in stages starting on the 27th. In addition, with oil prices surging due to Middle East tensions, analysis suggests the EV demand recovery is being brought forward, while EV sales in the European region rose 15.3% year-on-year through May this year. As a result, LG Energy Solution's overall plant utilization rate, which stood at 46.9% in the first quarter, is expected to rise to around 60% in the second half.

3. Helping K-Fashion Expand Overseas...Lotte Department Store Launches 'Next Lab'

- Key Summary: Lotte Department Store has launched 'Lotte Department Store Next Lab,' a platform supporting the overseas expansion of promising K-fashion brands. It supports processes that individual brands find difficult to pursue alone, such as export customs clearance, interior design, and marketing, and pursues a two-track strategy combining pop-up store partnerships with overseas retailers and entry into directly operated stores. The first base is Lotte Mall West Lake Hanoi in Vietnam, where the first participating brand, 'Musent,' will run a pop-up starting on the 24th of this month. Meanwhile, Lotte Department Store plans to continue pop-ups for a total of five K-fashion brands by year-end, and next year plans to expand Next Lab into a permanent pop-up specialty hall.

4. TG-C Less Effective Than Saline...FDA Approval Uncertain Even If October Trial Succeeds

- Key Summary: Kolon TissueGene's (950160.KQ) osteoarthritis cell gene therapy 'TG-C (formerly Invossa)' failed to meet the primary endpoint in a Phase 3 trial. On the Visual Analog Scale (VAS), the placebo group receiving physiological saline showed 0.5 points greater improvement than the TG-C group, failing to secure statistical significance. Jeon Seung-ho, CEO of Kolon TissueGene, said, "We will sufficiently analyze the causes and then establish the subsequent schedule," and the second Phase 3 trial currently underway is set to announce results in October. However, even if the second trial succeeds, whether it will obtain FDA (U.S. Food and Drug Administration) product approval remains uncertain.

5. "Saving 2 Million Won on Wedding Photography"...Couples-to-Be Preparing Weddings with AI

- Key Summary: As 'weddingflation,' with wedding costs averaging over 21 million won, intensifies, 'AI weddings' preparing for marriage with generative artificial intelligence (AI) are spreading. Couples-to-be are inputting photos taken at travel destinations into AI to replace wedding photography, and cases of using AI for invitations and pre-ceremony videos are also increasing. According to the Korea Consumer Agency, the nationwide average wedding cost as of last month was 21.59 million won, up 4.1% from the same period a year earlier. Accordingly, related products such as AI apps recommending makeup and dresses, and services guiding preparation schedules, are appearing one after another.

6. Recommending Performances and Checking Deliveries...AI Assistants Turning to Kakao

- Key Summary: The number of MCP (Model Context Protocol) servers registered on Kakao's external tool connection platform for AI agents, 'PlayMCP,' has grown to 461. The number of servers, which stood at about 15 last September, increased more than 30-fold in 10 months, and server calls through external AI such as ChatGPT, Claude, and OpenClaw reached an average of 80,000 per day over the past month. User-created servers such as the performance recommendation service 'ArtBridge' and the delivery tracking service 'Ddingdong' are also gaining popularity. Meanwhile, Kakao recently began pilot operation of a 'Seoul Real-Time City Data MCP Server' in cooperation with the Seoul Metropolitan Government, and plans to continue expanding the PlayMCP ecosystem.