Hyundai Motor Group chairman sees 2021 as 'inflection point for future growth’

Hyundai Motor Group Chairman Euisun Chung today delivered a New Year’s message for the Group’s employees around the globe, outlining the company’s strategic direction and commitments for the year 2021 and beyond.

Underlined in his speech were Hyundai’s future vision, customer-first philosophy, quality-innovation drive and direction for elevating its corporate culture, as the multi-affiliate group prepares to be at the forefront of the future mobility industry.

“We should all stay true to our mission, which is realising humanity’s dream of ‘safe and free mobility as well as a peaceful life,’” Chairman Chung stressed, adding that “2021 should be the year in which we kick-start our great transformation into a new growth engine.”

He also emphasised the importance of making bold progress in eco-friendliness, future technology, and business competitiveness.

In particular, the enduring need for prioritising “quality and safety” was highlighted, as the Group’s chief urged all staff of the Group and business partners to collaborate to “make quality and safety a top priority.”

2021: A year of transformation
“In the post-pandemic era, social values and lifestyles different from the past will prevail,” Euisun Chung said at the opening of the speech. “And as a result, only those companies prepared for continuous transformations will survive and grow.”

He also expressed confidence that 2021 will be a decisive year for Hyundai Motor Group as a catalyst for long-term sustainable investments and innovations. “We have to therefore think of 2021 as an inflection point for shaping our future growth and prepare ourselves to become the first mover in a new era.”

He presented a vision for transforming the Group to a new growth engine by expanding market share in the eco-friendly market, securing future technology capabilities and strengthening business competitiveness in collaboration with all the members of the Group.

The vision is encompassed into:

• Stressing eco-friendliness, future technology, and business competitiveness
• Reinforcing electrification leadership with E-GMP based new EV models
• Striving for carbon neutrality by utilizing hydrogen fuel cell technology
• Realising the safest and most innovative mobility technologies
• Expanding the realm of new mobility by investing in new growth field
•  Laying the foundation for the Group’s sustainable growth by rationalising business portfolio

“Our great transformation into a new growth engine is possible only when we are all on board together,” according to Chung. “If we persevere by uniting our hearts and capabilities, I’m confident we will triumph over any challenges and turn them into new growing opportunities.”

Targeting leadership in electrification
“With the launch of new vehicles based on the recently released electric vehicle platform, the E-GMP (Electric-Global Modular Platform), we plan to provide attractive eco-friendly mobility options that aptly reflect customers’ diverse tastes and needs at more reasonable prices,” the Hyundai Group Chairman said regarding the Group’s vision to become a top-tier global eco-friendly brand.

The E-GMP offers a multi-charging system allowing both the 800V and 400V charging capabilities.

“Furthermore, our hydrogen fuel cell technology, recognized as the world’s most advanced, will be expanded to diverse mobility and industrial sectors to help achieve carbon neutrality under the ‘HTWO (Hydrogen + Humanity)’ brand,” he added.

This year Hyundai Motor Group will concentrate efforts to become a global electric vehicle powerhouse by launching dedicated electric vehicles built on the E-GMP, including Hyundai Motor’s IONIQ 5, Kia’s crossover electric vehicle and Genesis luxury brand’s crossover EVs.

The E-GMP offers a multi-charging system allowing both the 800V and 400V charging capabilities. The system is the world’s first patented technology which operates the motor and inverter to boost 400V to 800V for a stable charging compatibility. A battery electric vehicle based on the E-GMP is capable of a maximum range of over 500 kilometres with a fully charged battery (WLTP standard) and it can high-speed charge up to 80 percent in just 18 minutes and can add up to 100 kilometers of driving range in just five minutes.

Hyundai Motor Group plans to expand its battery electric vehicle lineup from the current eight models to 23 by 2025 and sell 1 million units annually in global markets.

It will also accelerate the building of EV infrastructure. Hyundai Motor Group will set up 20 high-speed charging stations in Korea by 2021 and will further expand its charging network in cooperation with energy companies. Overseas, the Group plans to have EV charging infrastructure optimized for market-specific environments with various partners, including IONITY, Europe's leading high-power charging network in which the Group made a strategic investment.

Moreover, the Group will accelerate the creation of a hydrogen energy ecosystem. It will expand the supply of hydrogen fuel cell systems with the world’s best technology as power sources for ships, generators, and trains as well as global automakers. The Group recently introduced a dedicated HTWO brand for fuel cell systems as part of such efforts.

Safe and innovative mobility technologies
In terms of securing future technology capabilities, Chungsaid, “We will realize the safest and most innovative mobility technology in the world by strengthening our autonomous driving, connectivity and software capabilities. We will continue to invest in new growth fields such as urban air mobility (UAM) and robotics to expand the realm of new mobility in the near future.”

Hyundai Motor Group will apply Level 3 autonomous driving technology to mass production models in 2022 and push for commercialization projects for autonomous driving technologies such as robotaxi services in 2023.

Motional Inc., the joint venture between Hyundai Motor Group and Aptiv, plans to conduct Level 4 driverless tests on public roads in Nevada, U.S. In 2023, the company will work with U.S. car-sharing provider Lyft to launch autonomous driving commercialization services in major U.S. regions.

The Group will also focus on core technologies for next-generation software such as vehicle software that closely interacts with vehicle driving assistance, precision map-linked navigation, and various connected and infotainment services to provide the best convenience and safety to customers.

In the robotics area, the Group recently signed a deal to acquire the controlling stake in Boston Dynamics to actively respond to global mega trends of aging society and digital transformation as the Group seeks to provide humanity with a higher level of experience and more value.

Hyundai Motor Group’s wearable robot technology and its industrial and logistics automation technology are expected to maximize synergies with Boston Dynamics’ innovative capabilities. Robotics technology will also be applied to various mobility areas such as autonomous driving, UAM, and PBV (Purpose Built Vehicle) to help the Group establish a leading position.

The affiliates of Hyundai Motor Group will enhance their future business capabilities through electrification and self-driving core components and software specialization, and will explore new growth engines such as smart city development as well as renewable energy projects.

Aiming for customer-centricity
In his inaugural message in 2020, Chairman Chung said that “All of our goals and efforts must be customer-centric. The first step to customer happiness is to enable them to focus on their own lives through perfect quality of our products and services.”

With regards to the Group’s social responsibility, he said, “I kindly ask all of you to always prioritise our customers and humanity in your daily operations, so that we can maximise our shareholder value. Please think hard about how we can contribute to our partners, as well as various neighbours, communities and the environment.”