Hyundai, Kia present ZER01NE Creative Platform

South Korean automotive brands Hyundai and Kia have presented their ZER01NE Creative Platform at this year’s Consumer Electronics Show (CES) in Las Vegas, following the announcement they made last month.

The ZER01NE Platform highlights the Hyundai Motor Group’s strategy of building relationships with and nurturing an ecosystem for creators and startups. The ZER01NE Pavilion is located at Venetian Expo first floor of Eureka Park, where 10 startups are exhibiting.

Five of these are external companies (eMOTIV, 60Hz, ArgosVision, Cellplus Korea, and XYZ) while the other five (VODA AI, Difon, Fittrix, Wondermove, and AutoL) have been formed internally within the Hyundai Motor Group.

According to Hyundai, eMotiv develops digital therapeutics for children with ADHD using mobile games and artificial intelligence (AI) while 60Hertz develops technologies and services to use and manage eco-friendly energy sources.

Meanwhile, ArgosVision develops an ultra-wide 3D depth camera — ArgosVue — to provide a human-like wide field of view to smart robots and Cellplus Korea develops sensors and cameras for autonomous vehicles.

XYZ, on the other hand, is a service robot startup that applies AI and robotics technology to everyday life.

As for the internal startups, Hyundai said that VODA AI provides an AI machine vision platform service to the manufacturing industry whereas Difon Inc. is a startup spun off from Hyundai Motor Group to provide smart glass film solutions.

Fittrix, per Hyundai, is the first digital healthcare venture company to spin-off as an in-house startup of Hyundai Motor Group and AutoL is a LiDAR manufacturing startup spun off from Hyundai Motor company's in-house venture program last year.

Lastly, Wondermove is said to be a solution service group creating new value in business activities by providing business strategies and services based on automotive expertise, innovative business strategies, and cutting-edge IT technologies.

“Many of the disruptive breakthroughs that are shaping the transformation of mobility are coming from startups operating outside the automotive industry. Therefore, it is essential that Hyundai Motor Group leaves no avenue unexplored when researching future technologies,” said Hyundai Motor Group Vice President and Head of Open Innovation Execution Group Dr. Yunseong Hwang.

“The ZER01NE initiative enables the Group to engage with the best and brightest next-generation startups to develop innovative solutions. The influence of the ZER01NE Creative Talent Platform reaches far beyond the automotive and mobility sectors to accelerate the development of technology that will also deliver benefits for humanity as a whole,” he added.

Looking forward, Hyundai Motor and Kia will continue their investment in and commitment to the ZER01NE Creative Platform as it nurtures early-stage startups and transforms their concepts into reality.

The company believes that this will enable the Hyundai Motor Group to cement its lead in fields such as AI, Smart Mobility, Smart City, New Energy, Logistics, and Robotics.

Photos from Hyundai

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