Domestic and foreign interest in negotiations for joint development and production of autonomous electric vehicles between Hyundai Motor Group and Apple is increasing. Depending on the content of collaboration between the two companies, the production entity, and the timing, it is expected to affect the game of the future car market.
The US economic media CNBC reported on the 3rd (local time) that the negotiations for Apple’s Apple Car production with Hyundai Motor Group were in the final stage. The main content is to manufacture self-driving electric vehicles under the Apple brand at the Kia assembly plant in Georgia, USA. It is expected to enter production from 2024, but the final release point could be delayed, he added.
The market’s interest is a specific way of collaboration. The key is whether to supply E-GMP, a platform exclusively for electric vehicles by Hyundai Motor Group. Samsung Securities researcher Lim Eun-young said, “If you supply E-GMP to Apple, the Hyundai Motor Group can achieve economies of scale and lead the global electric vehicle ecosystem.”
There are many evaluations that it is positive for Kia, not for Hyundai Motor, to move forward. An industry official said, “Hyundai Motor has released its own electric car brand, Ioniq,” and said, “It will be difficult to consign Apple electric cars.” It is explained that Kia is more suitable than Hyundai Motor because it can respond more flexibly to market changes. When the two companies work together, Hyundai Motor and Kia can raise their competitiveness in the automotive software sector, and Apple can get help in the hardware sector, which is expected to have a’win-win effect’.
Some have pointed out that if Kia simply serves as a production base, there will be no real benefit. The reason is that Apple has created a structure that does not yield big profits to partners during the smartphone production process. However, Kim Tae-woo, CEO of KTB Asset Management, said, “Smart phones and cars are different,” and “Hyundai Motor Group will be able to take the lead.”
It is possible that Apple will join hands with other automakers, but it is a common analysis that that is not a damage to Hyundai Motors and Kia. Ko Tae-bong, head of the Research Center for Hi Investment & Securities, analyzed, “There is a side that turned doubts about the vision of Hyundai Motor and Kia into confidence even with Apple’s proposal.”
Reporter Kim Il-gyu [email protected]
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