Kawasaki Heavy Industries Unveils AI Magnet-Footed Climbing Robot for Shipyards

Kawasaki Heavy Industries has released an initial look at an AI-enabled, magnet-footed drone robot capable of climbing bulkheads and navigating small spaces as part of a broader push into physical AI across its manufacturing operations.

The prototype model measures two feet long, with the primary objective of fielding a fully developed version that can weld or perform weld inspections on vertical surfaces without high-reach equipment or human workers. A robot working aloft on contoured surfaces offers substantial operational advantages in a drydock, removing the need for staging and access scaffolding.

Japanese shipyards face a strong operational imperative to increase efficiency, as Japan's domestic labor supply remains restricted by an aging population. While guest-worker programs have helped fill labor gaps, tighter national work visa restrictions make technological automation a key strategy for maintaining shipyard productivity.

More broadly, Kawasaki is accelerating the deployment of AI across daily operations, focusing on physical AI—a fusion of hardware and artificial intelligence that enables robotic systems to interact dynamically with physical environments. The conglomerate plans to invest $3.5 billion across its manufacturing divisions over the next four years, including early field testing at the Sakaide shipyard in Kagawa Prefecture.

Jun Yamaguchi, lead co-creation manager at Kawasaki's Physical AI R&D lab in San Jose, California, stated:

"Physical AI reaches out from the screen into the real, physical world. Think of self-driving cars, or robots — physical AI can recognize what's happening around it, make decisions, and move things in the real world. As it spreads, we can expect the machines around us to move more flexibly, making our daily lives more convenient."

By 2030, Kawasaki Heavy Industries aims to deploy an AI-enabled humanoid robot into general service, expanding robotic capabilities across a wider array of industrial tasks.