Hyundai is investing nearly $1billion to develop self-driving technology through Motional, an autonomous driving startup.
“Hyundai Motor Group decided to obtain stable management rights in Motional to proactively develop autonomous driving technology and internalize core technology,” said the South Korean automaker.
Hyundai and Aptiv, an Irish-American automotive technology company, established Motional in March 2020. Hyundai will spend $487,889,235 in capital increase and an additional $456,246,344 to acquire 11% of April’s share in Motional. After its investment, the South Korean automaker will have a total share of 66.8% in Motional.
“The additional investment is expected to enhance Motional’s technological competitiveness by establishing the direction of technology development and lay the groundwork for expanding synergy between autonomous driving units within (Hyundai Motor Group),” said the Asian automaker.
In January 2024, Active announced that it would stop allocating capital to Motional and find ways to reduce its ownership share because the self-driving startup has incurred hefty operating losses over the past three years. According to business reports from Hyundai Motor Group’s affiliates, Motional’s operating losses amounted to $1,471,530,400.
In March, Motional demonstrated its self-driving tech in the United States with the Hyundai Ioniq 5 robotaxi. Motional’s self-driving tech passed a typical United States driver’s license test with the Ioniq 5.
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