LG has ‘playbook’ for looming uncertainties, China’s rise, says CEO

LG Electronics CEO Cho Joo-wan speaks throughout a gathering with reporters on the firm’s sales space for CES 2025 in Las Vegas, Wednesday (native time). Courtesy of LG Electronics

LAS VEGAS — LG Electronics has introduced that it has a “playbook” prepared to deal with looming uncertainties stemming from radical coverage modifications in main economies in addition to Chinese language tech rivals’ assertions, its CEO stated Wednesday (native time), describing these challenges as the brand new regular.

At a press briefing held alongside the corporate’s exhibition at CES 2025 in Las Vegas, LG Electronics CEO Cho Joo-wan outlined the corporate’s robotics technique, describing it as a „sure future“ that the corporate should put together for in an effort to achieve an early lead.

“Throughout CES 2025, I may observe that Chinese language tech corporations’ rise is now at a stage that requires our precise response,” Cho stated. “And the responses might be about sustaining a technological hole, catching up with Chinese language corporations’ cost-competitiveness and developing with inventive methods of operation.”

Throughout his current outings at necessary worldwide tech conventions, Cho has expressed issues over the rising presence of Chinese language equipment makers, which he views as a big problem for LG. This time at CES 2025, Cho stated he once more felt the formidable development of Chinese language makers, which compels LG to make larger efforts to keep up its present place.

“Merely put, now we have to keep up our technological hole between (us and) Chinese language corporations,” Cho stated.

“By way of value, nonetheless, now we have to meet up with Chinese language corporations. After we observe the provision chain of Chinese language corporations, there are a number of concepts that we are able to capitalize on. And lastly, now we have to distinguish our methods of operations, corresponding to house equipment subscription applications or introducing webOS.” WebOS is LG’s working system for TVs which offers streaming and gaming companies.

Concerning the upheavals in world commerce orders, together with the upcoming second Donald Trump administration’s protectionist commerce insurance policies, Cho stated LG has its “playbook” to deal with subsequent uncertainties.

“If geo-economic components severely have an effect on the overseas trade charge or the Trump administration imposes hefty tariffs (for imports from sure international locations), we are able to regulate manufacturing websites or introduce a swing manufacturing system, which permits the identical mannequin to be produced in varied places,” Cho stated. “In our playbook, there are a number of measures to deal with such uncertainties.”

Audiences crowd LG Electronics‘ sales space at CES 2025 at Las Vegas Conference Middle, Tuesday (native time). Courtesy of LG Electronics

‘Robotic enterprise is definite future’

Throughout the press assembly, Cho shared LG’s imaginative and prescient for robotics, mentioning the potential for growing the corporate’s stake in Bear Robotics, a U.S.-based AI serving robotic agency, wherein LG invested $60 million final March.

“I consider the robotic enterprise is a sure future,” Cho stated. “You could have heard of software-defined automobiles, and I consider robots can even be redefined by software program. To capitalize on the experience of former Google engineers at Bear Robotics and the corporate’s software program structure, we invested in Bear Robotics. Since we owns a name possibility to extend our stake, there could also be an opportunity for us to extend our stake within the firm.”

Software program-defined automobiles are a sort of future automobile that makes use of software program to handle and management its features and options, as a substitute of mechanical programs.

Cho’s point out of robotics got here as a number of world electronics corporations unveiled their ideas for AI-powered house robots at CES 2025. LG is ready to launch its Q9 AI house robotic later this yr to achieve an early lead out there.

“Since LG has been main the house equipment market thus far, I consider it’s truthful to assume that the primary area for our robotic enterprise might be house humanoids doing family chores or robotized house home equipment,“ he stated.

Concerning the corporate’s disappointing earnings forecast for the fourth quarter of final yr, Cho expressed remorse, attributing exponentially growing logistics prices. A day earlier, LG Electronics estimated that its working revenue from October to December final yr could be 146.1 billion gained, considerably beneath brokerages’ consensus of 253.7 billion gained.

“There have been lots of of billions of gained (of further bills) in logistics prices,” Cho stated. “As Chinese language corporations count on Trump’s reelection, they booked all transport areas, inflicting an increase of as much as 70 p.c in transport prices.”

He confused, nonetheless, the underperformance will not be associated to the elemental capabilities of the corporate.

“We’re nonetheless experiencing peak development. The present efficiency was impacted by one-off prices and non-recurring actions,“ the CEO added.