In Response to Continuing Supply Chain Instability
Amid continuing global supply chain instability, Hyundai Mobis is speeding up the internalization of automotive semiconductors. The company is reorganizing its semiconductor business unit and selecting development tasks to improve the supply stability for Hyundai Motor Group.
Hyundai Mobis established the Semiconductor Business Management Office earlier this year. It is an organization that oversees semiconductor development and design. The office is staffed with officials from Hyundai Autron’s semiconductor business, which Hyundai Mobis acquired at the end of 2020.
Hyundai Mobis has selected specific development tasks. It has recently divided the semiconductor design sector, which was established under the R&D headquarters last year, into the system semiconductor and the power semiconductor sectors. Vehicle semiconductors are used to control various systems of automobiles such as sensors and driving devices, and they are mostly system semiconductors.
Of note is that Hyundai Mobis has set aside power semiconductors, a type of system semiconductor, as a separate sector. Power semiconductors literally serve to control power. They are used for power conversion. In automobiles, they convert the DC power from the battery to AC power to the motor. The company's decision to separate the power semiconductor sector was intended to focus on technological improvement, as power semiconductor technology can determine the performance of electric vehicles.
The power semiconductor sector is expected to focus on silicon carbide (SiC) semiconductors. SiC is attracting much attention as next-generation silicon. SiC has higher power efficiency and durability than silicon (Si), a wafer material. An SiC semiconductor can handle more capacity than a normal Si semiconductor of the same size, making it possible to decrease component sizes and lower power consumption. In particular, it is attracting attention as a core technology that can solve a tough task in the electric vehicle industry because it can be lightweight while dealing with a large amount of electricity. Reducing the weight of electric vehicles and boosting energy efficiency are a hot research issue for all automakers.
Hyundai Mobis officially laid out its plan to internalize automotive semiconductors in March 2021 as the need to stabilize the supply chain grew due to the COVID-19 crisis.
The advent of electrification and autonomous driving will fuel the need for more semiconductors in the long term. This propsect also led Hyundai Mobis to make the decision to internalize automotive semiconductors. An average of 200 to 300 semiconductors are used in a car powered by an internal combustion engine, but 1,000 or more are required for an electric vehicle and more than 2,000 for an autonomous vehicle.