Hyundai Group details accelerated connected services expansion

The Hyundai Motor Group (HMG) has announced all new models launched globally as of 2023 will be equipped to receive over-the-air (OTA) software updates capable of enhancing the performance and functionality of both its electric and combustion vehicles.

The announcement is a key part of the Korean car-making giant’s new ‘software defined vehicles’ roadmap, in which software will become a core element of vehicle development and production, culminating in the launch of two bespoke new EV platforms fitted with integrated controllers and the eventual establishment of a ‘mobility ecosystem’.

Hyundai Group executives say the impending OTA expansion will upgrade the safety, convenience, connectivity, security and driving performance of vehicles, which in turn should enhance their residual value.

Accessed and installed via a new telecommunications-based connected-car operating system, the OTA updates will negate the need for motorists to wait until their next logbook service to receive the latest feature or functionality.

A suite of new ‘feature on demand’ (FoD) services (paid subscriptions) will also be launched next year, offering customers the ability to purchase selected functions or features for their vehicle, although exactly what these will include remains to be seen.

BMW introduced a similar initiative earlier in the year for things like heated seats, a heated steering wheel and BMW Drive Recorder, all of which require monthly, annual or three-yearly subscriptions. Customers can also buy the relevant function outright.

HMG is anticipating around 20 million vehicles will be registered with its connected-car services by 2025 and it will use the data generated by those vehicles to “further develop personalised services” better tailored to customer requirements.

As the connected services tech progresses, so too will the physical hardware designed to support it.

Two new dedicated electric vehicle platforms will be launched by HMG in 2025; one developed specifically for consumer vehicles (eM) and the other for purpose-built vehicles (eS).

Both platforms are derived from HMG’s Integrated Modular Architecture (IMA) – the successor of the current e-GMP architecture – which allows for the standardisation of key components like batteries and electric motors.

The new-found modularity and component commonality should theoretically reduce vehicle development time and costs for both Hyundai and Kia.

Both platforms are said to offer a 50 per cent improvement in driving range compared to ‘current EVs’ and will come with new-generation integrated vehicle controllers that ultimately serve to reduce vehicle complexity and allow for more frequent software updates.

“Previously, the software system needed to be upgraded separately for each controller to upgrade the functions of vehicles,” HMG said in a statement.

“However, an integrated controller delivers a solution to make this process more systematic and efficient.”

All of these integrated controllers as well as the current ones are compatible with the aforementioned connected-car operating system which – like the hardware – will evolve and progress to eventually serve as the catalyst for HMG’s autonomous driving endeavours.

The latter will take a leap forward later this year when the Genesis G90 limousine inherits an advanced Level 3 driving system called Highway Driving Pilot.

Autonomous driving technology – and the vehicle controllers – generates and operates on a huge amount of data which HMG plans to combine, harvest and process across a vehicle’s lifecycle to expand the number of services available both to motorists and the wider community.

This is why it’s working on a new data platform that will not only source data from vehicles, but additional sources like traffic signals, infrastructure and sat-nav mapping.

“Connected-car data will network with future Group mobility solutions, including Purpose Built Vehicles (PBVs), Advanced Air Mobility (AAM), robotaxis and robots,” the statement said.

“By establishing a new data platform, innovative services will be provided through connecting and processing the various data generated throughout the car life cycle, as well as promoting the creation of an open ecosystem in partnership with diverse industries such as logistics and accommodation.”

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