Israel is fast becoming a powerhouse in the development of advanced automotive technology and international companies and governmental bodies are taking notice.

The latest partnership to be announced is between the Technion – Israel Institute of Technology, South Korea’s Hyundai Motor Group, and KAIST (Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology).

Dubbed the HTK Consortium, it will conduct joint R&D projects around future mobility technologies, including autonomous driving, cybersecurity and artificial intelligence.

The Technion will act as the bridge between Hyundai Motor and Israel’s growing number of emerging automotive-tech companies. The consortium will incubate these startups, helping them to bring their products to market – starting first (but not exclusively) with Hyundai’s automotive product line.

“By identifying, nurturing and boosting the work of the best startups, we plan to accelerate our global leadership in future mobility,” Tae-won Lim, head of the Technology Innovation Center at Hyundai Motor, said.

Hyundai laid the groundwork for the new collaboration with the opening of the Technology Innovation Center in February 2017. The center oversees all of the company’s research in future technology from AI, advanced materials, energy and robotics, to the next generation of information communication technologies.

“Israel is known around the world for the quality of its startups, so with Technion and KAIST’s combined expertise, Hyundai Motor will be well placed to lead the development of the next generation of automotive technology,” Lim added.

Technion President Prof. Peretz Lavie concurred. We are now in the midst of the “fourth industrial revolution,” he said, one that is “fast changing the automotive industry, bringing with it unique opportunities for those who are bold enough to embrace them.”

Hyundai sold nearly 5 million vehicles globally in 2016 and employs 110,000 people.

(via Israel21c)

[Photo: Israel21c]