Humanoid robots take center stage as Seoul opens Smart Life Week
Miniature humanoid robots spar inside a boxing ring during Smart Life Week 2026 at COEX in Seoul, Tuesday. Newsis
Sporting and performing robots offer glimpse into future of physical AI
Inside the exhibition halls of Coex in southern Seoul on Tuesday, a bipedal humanoid robot swayed its arms to a K-pop beat. Across the room, another white robotic torso traded swift returns with a human opponent across a badminton net while robot fighters wearing oversized red and blue headgear sparred inside a miniature boxing ring.
The spectacle marked the opening of Smart Life Week (SLW) 2026, a tech-driven smart city expo hosted by the Seoul Metropolitan Government. Running through Thursday under the theme “Designing Life with AI,” the exhibition brings together 529 participating firms, public institutions and city governments to showcase how artificial intelligence (AI) is shifting from digital screens into physical reality.
This year’s event placed heavy emphasis on robotics and “physical AI,” which is capable of sensing, navigating and acting in physical environments alongside humans.
At the miniature boxing ring, which drew a large crowd of onlookers, the two fighting robots marched to the center as directed by an emcee, waving to spectators before the opening bell rang. Though their swings were somewhat stiff, the robots struck convincing stances, weaving and trading jabs to cheers and chuckles from the surrounding crowd.
Across the exhibition floor, city officials divided the showcase into two main areas. Hall A featured experiential zones modeled after major Seoul landmarks such as Gwanghwamun, the Han River and Dongdaemun Design Plaza to demonstrate AI applications in municipal administration, public transit, education and elder care. In Hall B, the Seoul AI Robot Show served as the event’s entertainment venue, featuring everything from dancing machines to robot athletes and quadrupedal robots.
A humanoid robot plays badminton against a human opponent during Smart Life Week 2026 at COEX in Seoul, Tuesday. Newsis
At the opening ceremony, keynote speaker Marc Raibert, executive director of RAI Institute and founder of Boston Dynamics, said humanity is living through a “remarkable moment in history.”
“Someday I want to have a robot at home that helps clean my car,” Raibert said, describing a vision where machines learn practical chores by observing human actions.
He then described a future vision in which robots will help provide solutions in many areas, such as elder care.
“I’m getting older, and someday I’m going to need some help,” he said. “Even though some people may not like the idea of robots taking care of their elderly, I think this will be a very successful thing.”
Beyond industrial utility and home assistance, Raibert emphasized that robotics is not solely a technical discipline, saying the field belongs as much to creators as to coders.
“I think people think of robotics as a technical area that’s for engineers and managers, but it’s really an area for creativity and artists,” Raibert said. “And I’m hoping that that will be front and center in the future of the work that we do in the physical world.”
Seoul is leveraging the event to promote its vision of becoming a leading city for physical AI. At the core of that strategy is the “Seoul Physical AI Belt,” a specialized corridor connecting AI Tech City in Yangjae with the robotics cluster in Suseo. Alongside industrial research, the city government currently operates self-driving vehicles on public roads, trying to apply AI as it seeks to turn the entire capital into a testbed for real-world robotics.
“Using the coldest technology to create the warmest change — this is the vision of physical AI that Seoul has chosen,” Mayor Oh Se-hoon said in his speech. “We will foster Smart Life Week into an international platform where cities, companies and researchers around the world share their experience and technology.”