2025-01-20

AI-Based Automation Robot Solutions Company Battery Recycling and Logistics Packaging Leading Technological Advancements in Automation

Investing 20 Billion KRW in Q2

Thoth, an AI-driven robotics automation company developed by the Korea Institute of Industrial Technology (KITECH), garnered four CES 2025 Innovation Awards at the world’s largest tech expo earlier this month.

Thoth develops AI-based process automation robotic solutions, with the slogan "We automate every process you can imagine." The company received a Series A investment of 5 billion KRW last year, and it is set to receive 15-20 billion KRW in Series B funding in the second quarter of this year.

Thoth holds pioneering technologies in electric vehicle (EV) battery disassembly automation and logistics packaging automation. These include multi-functional gripper design technology in the design field, as well as robot position, speed, acceleration, force, and torque control technologies in the control field. Thoth has secured over 30 related patents.

The company’s robotic prowess is largely attributed to its software. Thoth developed its deep learning-based vision recognition and robot control software, RAAPS (Robot AI-based Autonomous Programming Solution), which helps robots autonomously generate big data from human demonstrations. Using cameras to recognize their environment, robots generate control signals and optimize real-time parameters—similar to the robot AI solutions used by Google and NVIDIA.

Thoth has developed or is developing robots for a variety of tasks, including fruit sorting, potato condition inspection and classification, and raw material feeding for tissue production. Its robots are designed for sorting, packaging, inspection, tracking, classification, polishing, and processing. Thoth is on track to realize its motto of automating every process.

Building on its know-how, Thoth is also tackling automation in EV battery recycling. According to SNE Research, the global EV battery waste is expected to reach 3,455 GWh by 2040—equivalent to 67.74 million Tesla vehicles. The EV battery recycling market is projected to explode, growing from 20.2 trillion KRW in 2030 to 600 trillion KRW by 2050.

A Thoth representative noted, "Most battery recycling companies focus on post-processing, like raw material extraction. However, the disassembly process, as a pre-treatment step, must be automated for the recycling market to flourish." Handling battery packs, modules, and cells involves frequent risks like electrical shock, fire, and explosions, making automation with robots crucial.

Thoth's battery disassembly robot, "DisMantleBot," can disassemble 5 packs, 50 modules, and 1,400 cells per day. With a container-type robot measuring 4 meters wide, 3 meters deep, and 2.8 meters high, connecting eight of these robots enables continuous operations, disassembling 50 packs per day.

Currently, no battery recycling robots are commercially available. Research institutions such as Germany’s Fraunhofer Institute and the University of Birmingham in the UK are still in the R&D phase. A Thoth representative said, "Our goal is to be listed by 2027 through a special technical exception. We aim to become a global leader in AI robotics solutions that safely support human work."

source : https://www.hankyung.com/article/2025012064131