Betting on Self-driving Technology
Hyundai Motor Group will invest US$2 billion to set up a joint venture with top-tier U.S. automotive technology firm Aptiv PLC to commercialize autonomous driving technology.
The group announced that it has signed an agreement with Aptiv for the joint venture in New York on Sept. 23 (local time).
Aptiv is one of the leading firms in automotive electrical components and self-driving technologies. The U.S.-based firm took 20th place in last year’s world’s top automotive component supplier rankings recently released by Automotive News but it is one of the top players among electrical auto component suppliers.
Under the agreement, Hyundai Motor Group and Aptiv will each have a 50 percent stake in the joint venture, valued at a total of US$4 billion (4.79 trillion won). Hyundai Motor Group affiliates – Hyundai Motor, Kia Motors and Hyundai Mobis – will invest a total of US$2 billion (2.40 trillion won), including US$1.60 billion (1.92 trillion won) in cash and US$400 million (479 billion won) in vehicle engineering services, R&D resources, and access to intellectual property. Aptiv will contribute its autonomous driving technology, intellectual property, and approximately 700 employees focused on the development of scalable autonomous driving solutions.
The joint venture will aim to commercialize self-driving technology based on Hyundai Motor Group’s mass production base and Aptiv’s autonomous driving software technology. It will be established as early as 2020 in Boston.
Hyundai Motor Group executive vice chairman Chung Eui-sun said, "When Aptiv's industry-leading autonomous driving technology and Hyundai Motor Group’s capabilities are combined, it will create a strong synergy and lead the global ecosystem of autonomous driving."
Kevin Clark, president and chief executive officer of Aptiv, said, “Hyundai Motor Group's cutting-edge engineering and R&D capabilities make them our partner of choice to advance the development of a production-ready autonomous platform.”