Kia and Kakao Mobility to jointly develop purpose-built vehicles (PBVs) for autonomous driving services

*This content was translated by AI.

Kia and Kakao Mobility are collaborating to develop purpose-built vehicles (PBVs) optimized for autonomous driving services. The two companies announced on the 16th that they signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) for the development of PBVs dedicated to autonomous driving services at Kia's headquarters in Yangjae-dong, Seoul. Key executives from both companies attended the signing ceremony, including Kim Sang-dae, Executive Vice President and Head of Kia's PBV Business Division; Yu Ji-han, Executive Vice President in charge of SDV platforms; Kim Jin-gyu, Head of Kakao Mobility's Physical AI Division; and An Gyu-jin, Executive Vice President in charge of business divisions.

This agreement was established to activate an autonomous driving ecosystem based on PBVs by combining Kia's manufacturing and development capabilities for PBVs with Kakao Mobility's autonomous driving technology and service operation know-how. The two companies have designated the development and supply of PBV models dedicated to autonomous driving services, as well as the joint development and demonstration of service operation technologies, as core areas of cooperation and plan to proceed with specific projects.

First, Kia will supply the mid-size PBV model 'PV5' equipped with a DevKit (DevKit) to Kakao Mobility's autonomous driving pilot project later this year. A DevKit is a core device that supports vehicle external control software and inter-vehicle interface linkage. It helps autonomous driving and remote driving service providers more safely and precisely control major functions such as steering and braking of vehicles. Kia plans to gradually add supply of Yangsan-type PBV vehicles after reviewing data derived from the pilot operation process and specific business plans.

In addition, the two companies plan to jointly develop a dedicated autonomous driving PBV model optimized for actual commercial services by utilizing execution data accumulated through the pilot project. Along with this, they will also conduct development and verification of key operational technologies, including Remote Vehicle Assistance (RVA), wireless charging technology, and in-vehicle and external displays for unmanned communication, to maximize service stability and operational efficiency of autonomous vehicles.

Through this agreement, Kia aims to complete an organic cooperation system covering everything from vehicle design and manufacturing stages to actual service operation areas and strengthen its competitiveness in the autonomous mobility market. Kim Sang-dae, Executive Vice President of Kia, stated that collaboration with Kakao Mobility will contribute to activating the autonomous driving market for PBVs and added that by collaborating with various partner companies, they will provide customized mobility solutions and lead the future market.

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*This content was translated by AI.