DIC Announces Strategic Investment in AI Robotics Startup RT Corporation — Combining Materials Technologies and Robotics to Address Social Challenges and Drive Industrial Innovation —

Tokyo, Japan—DIC Corporation announced today that it has made a strategic investment in RT Corporation, a pioneering startup specializing in AI and robotics technologies.

Through this investment, DIC will combine its accumulated material science, as well as its process technologies, with RT’s practical AI and robotics technologies, aiming to address critical social challenges, including labor shortages driven by a declining birthrate and aging population, aging social infrastructure, and the need to enhance safety in manufacturing and logistics operations.

This collaboration will accelerate the development of innovative robotic technologies and the creation of new value to deliver greater automation, labor-saving, and advanced processes.

RT seeks to create a next-generation, Japan-based AI robotics industry and related industrial infrastructure founded on cutting-edge technologies. This includes those for embodied AI (AI integrated into physical systems that can learn and adapt to the real world), humanoid robots, quadrupedal robots and robot operating systems (ROS) *.

DIC’s long-term management plan—DIC Vision 2030—positions “smart living” as a priority business area. The Company works to provide chemical solutions in this arena that help advance people’s lives, with related initiatives supported by its “Direct to Society” business creation mechanism, which aims to transcend the traditional constraints of chemicals manufacturing to deliver value directly to society to meet future needs.

To date, DIC has worked to develop and commercialize innovative products that anticipate the future. Of note are the HAGAMOSphere^® omnidirectional multicopter and the MoR^® multifunctional robotic finger.

DIC believes that combining its expertise in materials innovation with RT’s advanced, practical robotics development capabilities will accelerate the creation of new value in robotics and industrial sectors.

Going forward, the two companies will endeavor to create new value in the robotics and industrial fields and will explore additional collaboration to develop innovative products and enhance services, thereby providing cutting-edge solutions that contribute to the resolution of social challenges.

* An ROS is an open-source software framework that streamlines robot development.

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About RT Corporation
Founded in 2005, RT is an AI and robotics company that has worked to create a society in which humans and robots can work and live together, in line with its mission of achieving what it calls “Life with Robot^®” and “Work with Robot^®”. RT develops unique humanoid, quadruped, and other robots, integrating embedded and physical AI with hardware technologies. The company’s practical, front line–focused approach contributes to the reduction of labor requirements, improvement of productivity and the resolution of social challenges. RT also boasts capabilities in ROSs and other cutting-edge software technologies and has contributed to the widespread deployment of foundational robotics technologies throughout Japan. The company has built a comprehensive system that encompasses everything from R&D to real-world implementation and is committed to educating and nurturing the next generation of robotics engineers.
For more information, please visit RT’s website: https://rt-net.jp/

About DIC Corporation
DIC Corporation is one of the world’s leading fine chemicals companies and the core of the DIC Group, a multinational organization comprising over 170 companies, including Sun Chemical Corporation, in more than 60 countries and territories. The DIC Group is recognized as a global leader in the markets for a variety of products essential to modern lifestyles, notably packaging materials, display materials such as those used in television and computer displays, and high-performance materials for smartphones and other digital devices, as well as for automobiles. Through such products, the Group endeavors to deliver safety and peace of mind, and color and comfort, to people everywhere. The DIC Group also seeks to contribute to a sustainable society by developing innovative products that respond to social change, and which help address social challenges. With annual consolidated net sales exceeding ¥1 trillion and 21,000-plus employees worldwide, the Group pledges to continue working in close cooperation with its customers wherever they are.
For more information, please visit the DIC global website: https://www.dic-global.com/en/