World's No. 1 Da Vinci Robot: "Connecting the Entire Surgical Process Beyond an Assistive Device"

Intuitive Surgical Korea Media Day Held on June 30

"Estimated 10 Billion Won in Social Cost Savings Last Year"

Robotic Surgery Expected to Play a Greater Role Amid Medical Staff Shortages and Competition from China

"Robotic surgery cannot be compared to the transition from internal combustion engines to electric vehicles. It is directly linked to human life, making verification and validation more important than anything else."

Choyongbeom, CEO of Intuitive Surgical Korea, made these remarks during a media day held at the Fairmont Ambassador Seoul in Yeouido, Seoul, on June 30, 2026. He stated, "Robotic-assisted surgery can evolve beyond being a simple surgical tool to serve as a digital platform that connects the entire surgical process, playing a role in development and enhancing regional access to healthcare."

This event was organized to present the future direction of the surgical ecosystem, where patient care, medical staff education, research, and data utilization are interconnected, based on Intuitive's 30 years of accumulated clinical experience and technological expertise. In particular, the focus was on sharing the changes that robotic-assisted surgery has brought to patient care and its future potential for development, especially through clinical experience accumulated in various medical fields such as women’s diseases and complex pediatric surgeries.

On the 30th, the da Vinci 5th generation system was demonstrated at the Intuitive Surgical Korea Media Day held at Fairmont Ambassador Seoul in Yeouido, Seoul. Photo by Sungmin Lee

CEO Choyongbeom said, "Globally, a cumulative total of 20.4 million patients have undergone surgery using the Da Vinci system, and last year alone, about 85,000 robotic surgeries were performed in Korea." He continued, "An analysis of last year's domestic surgical data suggests that the adoption of the Da Vinci system has led to effects such as reduced hospitalization periods, resulting in an estimated reduction of approximately 10 billion won in social costs."

Traditional surgical procedures are broadly categorized into open surgery and laparoscopic surgery. Open surgery involves larger incisions and longer recovery periods, so laparoscopic surgery has become more widely used in recent years. However, while laparoscopic surgery requires the medical staff to manipulate instruments directly, robotic-assisted surgery enables more stable and precise procedures thanks to features such as refined movement and tremor reduction, according to the company.

Lee Jeongryeol, Professor of Obstetrics and Gynecology at Seoul National University Bundang Hospital, who uses the Da Vinci system in the field, said, "There have been quite a few cases where lesions that were difficult to identify with the naked eye were discovered using the Da Vinci system." He added, "In the past, many patients hesitated due to the financial burden, but recently, more patients are proactively requesting robotic surgery."

Lee Jonghoon, Professor of Urology at Samsung Medical Center, analyzed, "Especially for pediatric patients, who have more than 80 years of life ahead of them, and considering the small surgical spaces and delicate tissues, robotic surgery is expected to be used even more actively." He further stated, "Ultimately, the vision is to raise the overall skill level so that even novice surgeons can perform procedures above a certain standard."

Yongbeom Choi, CEO of Intuitive Surgical Korea, is giving a presentation at the media day held on the 30th at the Fairmont Ambassador Seoul in Yeouido, Seoul. Photo by Sungmin Lee

CEO Choyongbeom remarked, "I believe robotic surgery can help resolve the issue of medical staff shortages. In the current reality of insufficient residents, robotic surgery can serve as an alternative." He explained, "It helps reduce the number of staff needed in the operating room and compensates for hand tremors, ultimately extending the 'surgeon life' of doctors."

He said, "Intuitive has so far focused on demonstrating the clinical value of robotic surgery compared to laparoscopic surgery. The fact that many competitors are developing robotic surgery platforms and that robotic surgery is becoming increasingly common is viewed positively."

Regarding the pursuit by latecomers from countries like China, he assessed that both risks and opportunities coexist. He said, "Up to now, we have competed to demonstrate what clinical significance robotic surgery has compared to laparoscopic surgery. The growing generalization of robotic surgery, as many competitors begin to create their own platforms, is a positive trend." He added, "However, the sophistication of services that can manage accumulated data and errors well is the competitive edge that latecomers will need to develop going forward."

CEO Choyongbeom concluded, "Since Intuitive first introduced robotic-assisted surgery systems in Korea, we have led the advancement of the robotic surgery field. Moving forward, we will continue to make every effort to ensure that more patients can benefit from treatment by prioritizing therapies that improve patient lives and by fostering a healthy robotic-assisted surgery ecosystem that connects patients, medical staff, education, and data."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.