Humanoid robots will perform K-pop at Dubai Mall on Friday 23 October, when South Korean physical AI company Galaxy Corporation holds the first UAE media preview of its planned Dubai Galaxy Robot Arena.
The preview runs from 2.30pm to 4pm in the Dolby Screen 21 auditorium on Level 2 of Reel Cinemas, Dubai Mall. According to the invitation, it will feature a K-pop performance by humanoid robots, a keynote by Galaxy Corporation chief executive Yong-ho Choi and other interactive experiences. The invitation describes Galaxy Corporation as a South Korean physical AI technology company that has achieved unicorn status.
What the preview is leading to
The Dubai arena is a planned venue, not yet an open attraction. The Korea Herald reported on 24 August that Choi said Galaxy aims to open a second Galaxy Robot Arena in Dubai by the end of 2026. “We’re opening in Dubai so tourists and foreign visitors from 100 countries around the world can experience physical robots,” Choi said at the opening event in Seoul, the newspaper reported.
The first arena sits inside Galaxy Robot Park in Seoul, which the Korea Herald said the company bills as the world’s first robot-centred cultural complex. The park began a preopening period on 5 May and drew about 20,000 visitors over three and a half months before its official opening, the newspaper reported. Its robot show lasts about 40 minutes, with robots dancing and performing taekwondo and martial arts alongside human performers. The Korea Herald reported that the humanoid robots are made by China’s Unitree Robotics and that, according to Choi, artificial intelligence coordinates their choreography rather than human operators controlling each robot.
A Dubai base since April
Galaxy has been preparing for the UAE for several months. Korean outlet Kyunghyang Sports reported on 17 April that the company had set up a Middle East entity, Galaxy ME, in Dubai, describing it as a first for a Korean entertainment firm. According to the report, Cho Sung-hae, who heads the entity, met Ahmed bin Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum on 16 April to discuss cooperation in media and advanced technology. The report quoted Ahmed bin Mohammed as saying: “We expect this to help further strengthen Dubai as a global hub for content and the creative economy.”
The New York showcase
The invitation says the Dubai preview follows a recent humanoid robot showcase at New York’s Rockefeller Center. amNewYork reported that the event, called “Peace Together”, took place on 21 September to coincide with the International Day of Peace. The centrepiece was a live conversation between Choi and one of his humanoid robots, Stofield Stein, which is styled after Choi as Albert Einstein, while other robots danced to K-pop songs.
According to amNewYork, Choi told the audience: “Emotions are what defines entertainment.” The report quoted him as adding: “Robots having hearts, I believe, is the direction that we should be headed.”
Company background
Choi founded Galaxy Corporation in 2019, according to the Korean business outlet MoneyToday, which reported in August that the company became a unicorn, a start-up valued at more than $1bn, by the end of 2025, with a corporate valuation of 1 trillion won. MoneyToday also reported revenue of 298.8 billion won last year and cumulative investment of 200 billion won. The same report said Galaxy plans a world tour by robot artists in the second half of 2027. The Korea Herald separately reported a robot idol act planned for the first half of 2027.
What visitors should know
The Friday session is a media preview, so it is not a public show. The invitation does not give a public opening date for the Dubai arena, and Choi’s end-of-2026 target is the only timeframe reported so far. Dubai already has at least one robot attraction run by another company, RIOT Arena, which Gulf News reported as the GCC’s first robot battle arena. It is unrelated to Galaxy.
