Hyundai Motor Group's E-FOREST Center, led by Choi Young-tae, outlined a roadmap to deploy autonomous manufacturing at HMGICS by 2030, followed by full humanoid-robot deployment and factory automation after 2032.

HMGICS will serve as a testing ground before expanding to the Hyundai Motor Group Metaplant America in Georgia and Hyundai's electric vehicle plant in Ulsan, with Singapore-based HMGICS acting as a 'mother plant' for early verification.

The plan envisions an autonomous manufacturing system in virtual space by 2030 and full humanoid-robot deployment in new plants after 2032, with rollout to U.S. Georgia Metaplant (HMGMA) and the Ulsan EV plant.

A digital twin-based Virtual R&D Lab and a tunnel-based exterior inspection system illustrate in-house AI development for quality inspection, enabling analysis of thousands of high-resolution images per vehicle to identify defects and reduce reliance on external vision solutions.

Showcased technologies include adaptable grippers and tactile sensing for handling irregular rubber components, two hand-gripper models for different parts, and real-time adjustment of pressing force during assembly.

The event will present the current status of quality systems, strategies for rapid plant rollout, and a unified data management and development environment to scale manufacturing solutions.

The goal is a cohesive, software-defined factory ecosystem that links quality, maintenance, and production data across multiple plants to enable autonomous operations and continuous learning.

E-FOREST Polaris AI, piloted at the Ulsan EV plant since September, integrates operations, quality, and maintenance data to perform data-driven root-cause analysis and standardized corrective actions.

Polaris, the AI agent for manufacturing, demonstrated prioritizing and diagnosing top body quality defects from July, identifying root causes such as mold contamination and recommending preventive inspections using live data from the Ulsan factory.

The initiative moves beyond traditional industrial robots by adopting physical AI that enables robots to recognize surroundings and make decisions for tasks like wiring, interior trim supply, and paint touch-ups.

A new manufacturing technology presentation competition and partner seminars will run during the event, focusing on physical AI, data-driven manufacturing innovation, and collaboration opportunities.

Digital Twin technology runs virtual simulations tied to real factory equipment to pre-validate and optimize production, reducing line stoppages and saving time and costs, while also simulating operations to identify potential issues before they occur.