Hyundai Motor Group Joins Autonomous Vehicle Demo Project in Gwangju

By Kim Eun-jung SEOUL, May 13 (Yonhap) -- Hyundai Motor Group said Wednesday it will join a government-led autonomous vehicle demonstration project in the southwestern city of Gwangju to test and advance its mobility solutions. Hyundai Motor Co. and Kia Corp. signed a memorandum of understanding with the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport, the Gwangju city government and mobility startups, including Autonomous A2Z and Ride Flux, during a ceremony in Gwangju, about 270 kilometers southwest of Seoul. Under the agreement, the two automakers will develop around 200 autonomous vehicles based on the Ioniq 5 electric vehicles and operate autonomous mobility services in Gwangju, including vehicle dispatching and fleet control operations. Atria AI, an autonomous driving software developed by Hyundai Motor's subsidiary, 42dot, will analyze road-driving data collected through the program to help test and improve autonomous driving capabilities. The project aims to achieve technology equivalent to Level 4 autonomous driving, in which vehicles are capable of handling all driving tasks within designated areas without human intervention. The government said it will support the project by easing regulations and providing policy support packages aimed at turning Gwangju into a special zone for autonomous vehicles. "We cannot afford to fall behind autonomous driving frontrunners, such as the United States and China," Transport Minister Kim Yun-duk said, outlining the government's vision of making South Korea one of the world's top three players in autonomous mobility solutions.