"Ten degrees to port. Come to course 110." Seconds after the officer of the watch aboard the 7,600-ton Aegis destroyer Seoae Ryu Seong-ryong gave the order, PIBOT — a humanoid robot standing at the helm — repeated it back and turned the wheel with its robotic arm. The simulated warship swung to port, cleared a narrow channel and settled on its new heading.
The scene, staged Thursday at the Republic of Korea Navy Education and Training Command's ship-handling simulator in Changwon, marks South Korea's first trial of a humanoid robot serving as a ship's crew member — a milestone in the military's push toward hybrid manned-unmanned maritime operations.
A Humanoid at the Helm
PIBOT was developed by a research team at the Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology (KAIST) led by Professor Shim Hyun-chul. Standing 165 centimeters tall and weighing 65 kilograms, the robot was trained on naval terminology and ship-handling procedures using a large language model (LLM), allowing it to understand spoken orders, repeat them back per naval protocol, and execute the corresponding physical actions.
The helmsman role — steering a vessel under the direction of the commanding officer — is normally performed by an enlisted sailor. In the demonstration, PIBOT filled that position through a full maneuvering sequence, reporting "Steady on course 110" upon completion.
Four Phases to Open-Sea Operations
The trial is the first of a four-phase program run by the Navy and KAIST:
- Land-based simulator testing — now underway in Changwon
- Trials aboard a moored vessel
- Daytime sea trials
- Extended day-and-night operations at sea
Using data from the first phase, researchers will assess PIBOT's response time, steering accuracy and operational performance before advancing to the remaining stages. The Navy expects robots to eventually take on a broader range of responsibilities beyond ship handling, reducing sailors' workloads.
Why It Matters
The program is part of the Navy's broader effort to develop a hybrid manned-unmanned maritime combat system. Brig. Gen. Kim Hyung-jun, head of the Navy's Force Analysis, Test and Evaluation Group, framed the trial against a hard demographic reality: "The findings will help us adapt proactively to a changing defense environment shaped by a rapidly shrinking pool of military recruits and advances in defense technology."
PIBOT has been under development since 2022 as a KAIST-led project backed by 5.7 billion won (about $4.2 million) from the Defense Acquisition Program Administration (DAPA).
The trial adds a naval dimension to a growing list of military humanoid applications. While most defense robotics programs focus on ground vehicles and logistics, putting a humanoid at a warship's helm tests a different skill set: protocol-following language interaction combined with precise, accountable physical control. If PIBOT clears the remaining three phases, South Korea would have the first validated pathway for humanoid crew members on active naval vessels — a template other navies facing recruitment shortfalls will be watching closely.
