Samsung’s AI-powered robot vacuum cleaner takes on China’s Roborock

South Korean tech giant Samsung Electronics Co.'s AI-powered robot vacuum cleaners are rapidly catching up to Chinese products, which dominate the Korean market.

According to industry data on Friday, Samsung ranked second in the domestic robot cleaner market with a market share nearing the mid-30% level as of August. China’s Beijing Roborock Technology Co. commands a nearly 40% market share in Korea.

Beijing Roborock Technology is known for its Roborock product in Korea and abroad.

Other Chinese brands such as Ecovacs Robotics Co. and Dreame Technology Co., and Korea’s LG Electronics Inc., each control about 10% of the Korean market.

Data showed the gap in market share between Samsung and Beijing Roborock has narrowed from 30 percentage points in the first quarter to a mere three to four percentage points in the third quarter.

In the first quarter, Samsung posted a single-digit market share in the domestic robot vacuum cleaner market

With its release of the Bespoke AI Steam, however, its market share has grown rapidly.

Roborock’s market share, meanwhile, has declined from the mid-40% range in the first quarter.

ALL-IN-ONE VACUUM

Samsung’s Bespoke AI Steam, launched in April, has boosted the company’s market share to the mid-30% range in just four months, according to industry officials.

The all-in-one robot vacuums, which simultaneously handle dust suction and mopping, quickly gained popularity, with cumulative sales surpassing 10,000 units within 25 days of its launch.

Samsung attributed its fast market share growth to the product’s hygiene-focused features.

The model offers a high-temperature steam function that eliminates bacteria from the mop, and relies on water and steam without using additional cleaning agents.

This feature, unlike many Chinese models, which use cleaning agents, has been well received by households with young children and pets, according to industry officials.

Buoyed by its recent success, Samsung aims to become the domestic market leader by the end of this year.

Heightened security concerns surrounding robot vacuums are also providing a tailwind for Samsung.

A recent incident in the US involved the hacking of an Ecovacs robot vacuum, which led to the machine shouting profanities and racial slurs.

Samsung boasts its proprietary security system, Knox, which has received top-tier certifications from global agencies.

LG Electronics, which launched its latest vacuum cleaner Roboking AI All-in-One three months after Samsung’s Bespoke AI Steam, said it, too, expects its market share to rise in the coming quarters, buoyed by the new product.

Write to Chae-Yeon Kim at why29@hankyung.com
In-Soo Nam edited this article.