SFA signs MOU with Rainbow Robotics in push for unmanned factories by 2030

SFA, a semiconductor and display equipment maker, will work with Rainbow Robotics to develop AI-driven autonomous manufacturing technology, as part of its goal of fully unmanned operations by 2030.

The two Korean companies signed a memorandum of understanding at SFA’s Asan facility in South Chungcheong on Wednesday. The agreement covers the joint research and development of autonomous manufacturing and robotics technology, as well as joint sales and marketing.

For the partnership, SFA will pair its manufacturing and logistics software with Rainbow Robotics’ robot hardware and precision control technology, moving it closer to its goal of unmanned operations. Rainbow Robotics started by developing humanoid robot technology and has since grown into a full-stack robotics company.

SFA expects the partnership to help sharpen its robotic logistics solutions and strengthen its position in the fast-growing global market for autonomous manufacturing robotics. It also said that the partnership could help reach its 2030 target ahead of schedule.

Rainbow Robotics, in turn, expects to secure a stable sales channel for its robots through SFA, describing the company as a dominant player in the manufacturing equipment market.

During a press conference after the MOU signing, SFA laid out the direction of its chip manufacturing automation business and said that demand from clients is rising.

The company currently sells overhead hoist transports (OHT), stockers and lifts. OHTs are ceiling-mounted vehicles that carry wafer containers between process stations in a fab. Stockers are automated storage units that hold the containers between steps, and lifts move them between floors.

“SFA has entered two customers’ factories so far [with our existing equipment],” CEO Kim Sang-kyong said. “We aim to win over two or three other chipmakers. […] We are also looking at distribution logistics. As chip prices have surged, export and import logistics centers are seeking automation to reduce the risk of damage from human handling.”

On the AI side, SFA introduced predictive maintenance software that uses vibration data to flag equipment failures on semiconductor lines about five years ago. Kim said that companies with accumulated data will keep pulling ahead of peers that recently started similar efforts. The company is also taking part in a government-backed project to inspect high bandwidth memory, or HBM, using AI vision and computed tomography, or CT, technology.

Update, Sept. 30, 2026: Added SFA CEO Kim Sang-kyong’s statement.

BY LEE JAE-LIM [[email protected]]