Series Index
1- Humanoid Civilization Shift Driven by Physical AI: The Emergence of “i-Human (AI-Human) Productivity.”
2- Human Reallocation: Laborers Disappear, Leaving “Architects” and “Governors.”
3- The Essential Conditions for Humanoids: System Requirements for Power, Safety, Autonomy, and Control
4- Humanoid Evolution by Industry: Expanding Forms and Differentiated Roles
5- The AI-Human Economy: How Robots Could Reshape Global Productivity
6- The Technology Inflection Point: Physical AI Hits Turning Point as Sensors and Motor Control Advance
By Im Byoung-min (IBM) Columnist
The human hand occupies an outsized role in daily life. It is directly involved in nearly every activity people perform, from labor and creation to the routines of ordinary living. Its high utility makes it one of the most active parts of the body, essential not only for manipulating tools and carrying out routine tasks, but also for performing highly complex functions.
Composed of more than 30 muscles and 27 joints and ligaments, the hand enables remarkably precise movement. That precision is closely linked to the evolution of the brain. From operating smartphones and eating to writing, grasping objects, and translating thought and visual intuition into action, the hand supports much of human activity. For that reason, it is also one of the most important components in humanoid design.
In recent years, the technological approach has increasingly shifted toward tendon-inspired structures that transmit force through cables rather than muscles. In effect, these systems attempt to mimic the function of tendons in the human body, offering a mechanical pathway toward finer and more natural movement.
The hand is the defining bottleneck
In March 2026, Samsung Electronics established the Hand Research Institute, a newly created independent research organization dedicated to robotic hands and related technologies, one of the core components of humanoid robots. The move reflects a broader effort to secure hand technology as a central pillar of Samsung’s robotics business.
The strategy is significant because the hand remains one of the most difficult technical barriers in humanoid development. A robot may walk, lift, or navigate, but without the ability to grasp, manipulate, and respond delicately to objects of different shapes and materials, its functional range remains limited. That is why Samsung’s dedicated unit, also known as the “Hand Lab,” is likely to play a crucial role in strengthening the company’s robotics competitiveness.
Samsung has also declared its intention to convert its entire manufacturing line into an AI-driven autonomous factory by 2030. In that context, securing robot hand technology capable of performing precise tasks like a human hand becomes not just desirable, but essential. The company appears to be seeking both the motion data required for humanoid systems and the technical foundation for a broader move into the robotics market.
The ability to perceive and grasp objects made of different materials and in different shapes, while adjusting force with the delicacy needed for assembly processes, is likely to become a major focus of future research. That effort will increasingly depend on AI systems that allow robot hands to learn optimal working methods autonomously. As humanoid physical AI advances, the field is moving rapidly toward machines that can perceive real-world environments, evaluate them, and act proactively.
There is an irony here. While writing about robotic hands, I revisited older materials and found a 20-page research document on hand technology written about 50 years ago, during the early phase of first-generation IT. That document became a starting point for resuming K-Hand humanoid hand research. Should Samsung’s Hand Lab ever seek my advice, I would gladly contribute to helping it become a world-leading effort.
Why sensors sit at the center of physical AI
Seen from the perspective of a technological inflection point, sensors occupy a central role in the physical AI systems shaped by actuator and motor-control algorithms. Sensors detect the environment, control algorithms analyze incoming information, and motors convert those decisions into physical action. It is this chain that enables AI systems to interact with and adapt to the real world.
In that sense, sensors provide the input from which algorithms make judgments and execute functions. They form the practical foundation of machine intelligence in a physical environment. In humanoids, sensors play a role comparable to that of human sensory organs, allowing the machine to perceive its surroundings and respond to them.
To build a truly capable humanoid, one must first understand the basic structural principles of the human body. If humanoid robots are ultimately expected to resemble humans and perform tasks naturally with heads, arms, and legs, then they must be built around the movement principles of the human body itself.
The body as a blueprint for machine design
The human hand consists of more than 30 muscles and 27 joints and ligaments, which allows for highly precise motion. The arms and legs are equally complex. Together, both arms contain roughly 60 bones, more than 60 muscles, and around 40 to 50 tendons. Both legs contain about 60 bones, around 70 muscles, and roughly 50 to 60 tendons.
Taken together, the arms and legs comprise approximately 120 bones, more than 130 muscles, and around 100 tendons. This structure, too, is closely connected to the evolution of the brain. The body is not simply a mechanical frame. It is an integrated system in which muscles, tendons, bones, joints, and nerves work in continuous coordination.
Tendons connect muscles and bones, assist joint movement, and help maintain stable motion. Bones support the body and create the framework for movement, while joints connect bones and allow the limbs to move smoothly. When muscles contract, force is transmitted to the bones through tendons, and joints help translate that force into a broad range of actions.
Nerves regulate this entire process by linking the brain and the muscles. They carry signals from the brain to the muscles to move the limbs, while also transmitting sensory information — such as touch and pain — back to the brain so the body can recognize its own condition. That exchange between movement and sensation is what gives human physical action its extraordinary flexibility and coordination.
Korea’s sensor strength and the limit of replication
In humanoids, sensors perform an equally important function by transmitting the signals that regulate movement and force, functionally connecting the mechanical equivalents of muscles, bones, and joints to a control system. In this area, Korea already ranks among the world’s leading countries in sensor technology.
Industrial sensors, automotive sensors, and semiconductor-based sensors — including ultra-precise position sensors, pressure sensors, temperature sensors, and optical sensors used in smart factories, automobiles, and semiconductor equipment — have advanced to a level comparable with global standards. This gives Korea a meaningful industrial foundation as the humanoid sector develops.
Yet even if these sensor systems operate through algorithms designed by humans, the five human senses remain a profound mystery. Human beings perceive changes in both the internal and external environment through sight, hearing, smell, taste, and touch. These senses do not function in isolation. They interact with one another, exchange information, and form a single integrated experience.
That is where the boundary becomes clear. Humanoids may continue to improve in sensing, control, and action, but the uniquely human capacity to absorb natural stimuli — light, sound, sensation, and touch — and integrate them into a living, unified consciousness remains far more difficult to replicate. However advanced humanoids become, that mystery may remain beyond complete imitation.
