The South Korean Navy tested a humanoid robot named Pibot as a ship’s helmsman in its first operational experiment to explore the future use of robots aboard naval vessels.

Developed with researchers from the Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology, Pibot successfully followed steering commands and performed tasks normally handled by human crew members.

The Navy plans a four-stage testing program, moving from simulations to real-world sea operations after evaluating the robot’s accuracy, response time, and reliability.

Officials said robots could help reduce sailors’ workloads and address future personnel shortages caused by South Korea’s declining population, UPI has reported.

The experiment is part of the Navy’s broader effort to develop a combined manned and unmanned maritime combat system.