KB Financial Group will sponsor RoboCup 2026 Incheon, an AI and robotics international competition described as the world’s largest. It will operate an on-site space where visitors can experience AI and robot technologies, and it will also support programmes aimed at growing the robot industry ecosystem.

KB Financial said on July 1 that RoboCup 2026 Incheon, in which it will take part as main sponsor, will open on July 2 at Songdo Convensia in Incheon. The event runs through July 6, with teams from 45 countries and about 3,000 participants.

RoboCup is an AI and robotics international competition in which roboticists and research institutions from around the world compete in technical capability and creativity.

KB Financial will run a brand experience space at the venue under the theme "Dream Together with KB." It plans to let visitors directly experience the future that AI and robot technologies will create, and to introduce the role of finance in supporting growth in future industries.

At its flagship booth, KB Financial will present examples of its productive finance. It will introduce the "KB Financial Deep Tech Scale-up Fund," formed at 160 billion won to support AI and robotics innovative companies, and its investee in National Growth Fund No. 1 jointly arranged with the Korea Development Bank, as well as the "KB Kookmin Growth Infrastructure Fund" worth 1 trillion won.

It will also take part in sponsoring the "Humanoid Robot Challenge" hosted by the Korea Institute for Robot Industry Advancement. The programme verifies the feasibility of applying humanoid robots at industrial sites through missions that simulate manufacturing workplaces, and identifies and fosters talent in robotics.

A KB Financial official said, "AI and robot technologies are a key growth engine that will lead South Korea’s future competitiveness," and added, "We will continue to discover new growth engines and support the growth of innovative industries."