[사설] Hyundai Motor-Apple Alliance Promotion, Expects Global Game Change

The news that Hyundai Motor Company and Apple will form an alliance to develop self-driving electric vehicles is drawing extraordinary attention from investors as well as the industry. The reaction is even hotter because it is news that came out after Apple recently officially formulated the development of the Apple Car. The synergy is expected to be great in that Hyundai Motor Company has a competitive edge in autonomous driving and electric vehicles, and Apple is the best information technology (IT) company building an unrivaled mobile ecosystem. If the alliance is already established, there is a prospect that it will become a global game changer in the future car market.

Hyundai Motor Company is spared, saying, “We are being asked for cooperation in joint development of self-driving electric vehicles from a number of companies, but since it is in the early stages, there is no decision.” However, only the fact that it is receiving love calls against alliances of these companies in the future car market can predict the status of Hyundai Motor Company. Hyundai Motor Company is concentrating on securing future car technology by establishing’Moral’ in cooperation with Active, an autonomous driving company in the United States. Last month, for the first time, it unveiled its own production platform for electric vehicles. Hyundai Motor Company announced that it plans to have an annual production system of over 1 million electric vehicles within five years. Hyundai Motor Company already possesses a high level of technology in the core fields of electric vehicles such as ultra-fast charging. This is why Apple is paying attention to Hyundai Motor Company. Since 2014, Apple has entered the electric vehicle business under the name of’Project Titan’, but has not been able to achieve such results. There is also a negative evaluation that smartphones and electric vehicles are completely different fields. For Apple, no partner is as good as Hyundai Motor Company to compensate for these shortcomings.

Since negotiations have just begun, there are many variables until an actual alliance is formed. There are also concerns that Apple’s brand power is so strong that Hyundai Motor will become a consigned manufacturer of Apple Cars. Nevertheless, the alliance between Hyundai Motor Company and Apple is highly anticipated as it has the potential to shake the game in the future car market. If cooperation extends beyond the development of autonomous electric vehicles to robot taxis and flying cars, it could become a global game changer in the future mobility industry.
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