Samsung is planning to collaborate with South Korean carmaker Hyundai for electric cars. It is being reported that top bosses of the two firms met to discuss a potential collaboration. Samsung may want to supply EV batteries and other connected car components for Hyundai's electric vehicles.
Samsung Electronics Vice Chairman Lee Jae-yong met Chung Eui-sun, Executive Vice Chairman of Hyundai Motor Group, at Samsung SDI's battery plant in Cheonan, Seoul. Senior executives of the two companies were also present during the meeting. The two firms are said to have discussed next-gen battery technologies and also shared their research and development statuses in the field with each other.
A Samsung spokesperson said that the company's all-solid-state batteries are stable and sturdy, and the South Korean electronics firm is hoping for expanded collaboration with Hyundai in the electric mobility segment. Hyundai currently uses batteries from LG Chem and SK Innovation in its electric cars, but Samsung could soon be added to its list of battery suppliers.
Currently, electric vehicles use batteries with liquid electrolytes. However, all-solid-state batteries offer improved performance and higher energy density. Samsung had announced back in March that its solid-state batteries could allow electric cars to travel as long as 800km in a single charge and can handle over 1,000 charge cycles.
Samsung acquired HARMAN International for $8 billion three years ago. The company now makes connected car components, digital cockpits, displays, infotainment systems, memory, and sensors for cars. If Samsung's collaboration with Hyundai succeeds, it could mean more business for the South Korean firm.
Hyundai has plans to launch 44 eco-friendly car models by 2025, and 23 of them would be purely electric. Samsung SDI already supplies EV batteries to Lucid Motors and is trying to be more self-reliant by manufacturing cathodes internally.
