The Hyundai Motor Group (HMG) will collaborate with Canoo, a Los Angeles-based company creating electric vehicles (EVs) for subscription only, to jointly develop an EV platform based on Canoo’s proprietary skateboard design for future Hyundai and Kia models.
As part of the collaboration, Canoo will provide engineering services to help develop a fully scalable, all-electric platform to meet both Korean carmakers’ specifications. HMG expects the platform to help facilitate its commitment to delivering cost-competitive electrified vehicles — ranging from small-sized EVs to Purpose-Built Vehicles (PBV) — that can meet diverse customer needs.
Canoo’s skateboard platform houses the most critical components of the vehicle with a strong emphasis on functional integration, meaning all components fulfill as many functions as possible. This feat of engineering reduces the skateboard size, weight and total number of parts, which ultimately provides more interior cabin space and a more cost-effective EV offering. In addition, the skateboard is a self-contained unit that can support any cabin design.
HMG envisions an adaptable all-electric platform using Canoo’s scalable skateboard architecture to allow for a simplified and standardized development process for Hyundai and Kia electrified vehicles, which is expected to help reduce cost that can be passed along to consumers. It also aims to reduce complexity of its EV assembly line, allowing for rapid response to changing market demands and customer preferences.
With this collaboration, Hyundai Motor Group doubles down on its recent commitment to invest US$87 billion (about RM360.3 billion) over the next 5 years for future growth. As part of this drive, Hyundai plans to invest US$52 billion (RM215.4 billion) in future technologies through 2025, while Kia will invest US$25 billion (RM103.5 billion) in electrification and future mobility technologies, aiming for eco-friendly vehicles to comprise 25% of its total sales by 2025.
“We were highly impressed by the speed and efficiency in which Canoo developed their innovative EV architecture, making them the perfect engineering partner for us as we transition to become a frontrunner in the future mobility industry,” said Albert Biermann, Head of Research & Development, Hyundai Motor Group. “We will collaborate with Canoo engineers to develop a cost-effective Hyundai platform concept that is autonomous ready and suitable for mass adoption.”
Canoo unveiled its first electric vehicle for subscription only in September 2019, just 19 months after the company’s founding in December 2017. The company’s proprietary skateboard architecture, which directly houses the batteries and electric drivetrain, has enabled Canoo to reimagine EV design in a way that challenges traditional automotive shape and functionality.
The company recently opened the waitlist for its first vehicle. This is a major milestone in its young history and the culmination of the efforts of 300+ experts working to deliver a proof of concept of Canoo’s backbone architectural systems. Canoo’s first vehicle, to be launched in 2021, will be designed for a world in which transportation is becoming increasingly electric, shared and autonomous.
Canoo takes a different approach to EV engineering and marketing
