This article was displayed on the ChosunBiz MoneyMove (MM) site at 4:06 p.m. on Mar. 4, 2026.
Robocon, a construction-robot startup chosen by Samsung C&T, has raised new funding of 10 billion won. Q Capital Partners, a domestic private equity fund (PEF) manager that highly valued Robocon's unique, unrivaled rebar processing automation technology, stepped up as a key investor and invested 5 billion won.
According to the investment banking (IB) industry on the 4th, Robocon recently conducted a Series C round and raised about 10 billion won. Lead investor Q Capital Partners committed 5 billion won, and SGC Partners and Korea Investment & Securities Co. joined as co-investors.
Robocon was founded in Nov. 2020 when the robotics division of DaehanSteel Group's Daehan Networks was spun off. Its flagship product is the "ARON" robot solution specialized for steel industry worksites, which automates processes from rebar transport to cutting and processing to reduce labor costs and loss.
Specifically, the company said that producing 3,000 tons of structural rebar in a rebar processing plant used to require up to 30 workers, but with ARON the workforce drops to one-third or less. The rebar loss rate, which had exceeded 3% in precision processes, was also reduced to around 1%.
Earlier, Robocon also drew attention by receiving strategic investment from Samsung C&T. In Sept. 2023, using Samsung Venture Investment, the Samsung Group corporate venture capital (CVC), Samsung C&T invested 15 billion won in Robocon and secured about 30% equity. Last year, it was consolidated as a subsidiary.
Investors including Q Capital Partners moved forward on the view that robot adoption will spread across the construction industry. Beyond cutting labor costs, the automation of high-risk tasks can reduce safety accidents, a chronic problem at construction sites, which has emerged as a strong investment appeal.
Robocon's solution is being introduced one after another at global sites, including the Singapore Tuas Port and the Taiwan Taipei Airport projects undertaken by Korean builders. Recently, the U.K.'s major rebar processing company Midland Steel adopted Robocon's solution for its production process.
Robocon plans to use the newly secured funds to advance its technology and expand its global market share. In particular, it will expand facilities to respond to increasing overseas orders and broaden its robot solution lineup from rebar processing to overall processes, including frame assembly.
An IB industry official said, "Robocon is a 'track record-based' robotics company that has already secured order references in the global market," adding, "With Samsung C&T as a business partner and even presenting a 2027 listing target, investors flocked despite the construction industry slowdown."