Insider Brief
- Boston Dynamics opened the Robotics Metaplant Application Center at Hyundai Motor Group Metaplant America in Georgia to train Atlas humanoid robots for automotive production tasks.
- Atlas is initially learning parts logistics and sequencing, with plans to move into component assembly by 2030 as Hyundai prepares to deploy 25,000 robots across Hyundai Motor and Kia plants and build a U.S. factory capable of producing 30,000 robots annually.
- Boston Dynamics plans to move RMAC into a facility about 10 times larger in 2027 and begin exploring Atlas applications in industries including manufacturing, aerospace, semiconductors, logistics, food and beverage, and life sciences.
Boston Dynamics has opened a training and testing center for its Atlas humanoid robot .to get robots ready to work in automotive production.
The Robotics Metaplant Application Center, or RMAC, is operating at Hyundai Motor Group Metaplant America outside Savannah, Ga. and is designed to train Atlas robots inside a working automotive manufacturing environment, according to the Hyundai’s wholly owned subsidiary Boston Dynamics.
Atlas robots at the center are initially learning logistics tasks such as preparing and sequencing parts before placing them in the correct order for assembly and move to component assembly by 2030. Eventually, Boston Dynamics said they will add work involving repetitive motions and physically demanding tasks such as lifting heavy loads.
Hyundai plans to deploy 25,000 Atlas robots across Hyundai Motor and Kia plants around the world over the next few years. The establishment of a U.S. production facility capable of manufacturing 30,000 robots annually is also planned, Boston Dynamics noted.
“Together with Hyundai Motor Group, we are pioneering physical AI at enterprise scale,” Zack Jackowski, chief product and technology officer at Boston Dynamics, said in the announcement. “We’re excited to be working with such a dedicated partner in the Group, and we have established a clear strategy to optimize our supply chain, production, testing, and deployment capabilities for Atlas. RMAC reinforces our shared ambition to create a future where robots amplify human potential by making work safer and more productive.”
The first phase of RMAC is already underway, with Boston Dynamics planning to move the program into a new building at the Georgia complex in 2027. The facility will be about 10 times the size of the current center and will continue preparing Atlas for automotive deployments.
Boston Dynamics indicated it will begin exploring Atlas uses outside automotive manufacturing next year. The company said it is in discussions with existing Spot and Stretch customers in manufacturing, aerospace, semiconductors, logistics, food and beverage, and life sciences to expand data collection and other tasks supporting Atlas training in 2027.
Featured image credit: Boston Dynamics
