*This content was translated by AI.
At the Korea Automotive Journalists Association (chaired by Lee Da-il, hereinafter "the Association") 3rd Seminar held on the 21st at Goyang Hyundai Motors Studio, researchers from Hyundai Motor Group's Pleos project revealed practical measures to expand the app ecosystem, sparking significant interest.
During the seminar, Hyundai Motor's Pleos development team members unveiled plans to build an integrated ecosystem for the next-generation infotainment platform 'Pleos' aimed at transitioning to software-defined vehicles (SDV). The plan involves consolidating previously fragmented app markets—such as Blue Link and Kia Connect Store—into a single unified marketplace and actively expanding an app ecosystem that enables participation from global developers.
The core message presented at the seminar was that Hyundai Motor Group is currently pursuing a project to integrate three existing app markets, timed with the launch of the Pleos app market. The development team confirmed they have established a dedicated developer portal called 'Pleos Playground' to allow diverse third-party apps to enter, similar to mobile ecosystems, and are broadening the scope of publicly available application programming interfaces (APIs) for external developers. However, due to vehicle system characteristics requiring strict scrutiny of personal information protection, security, and safety elements, they emphasized a cautious approach involving phased verification procedures compared to mobile platforms.
The Pleos platform focuses on ensuring continuity between in-vehicle control functions and external software environments. To attract more third-party developers, the company is simultaneously pursuing revenue models and differentiating customer experiences. It also openly stated plans to secure over 30 major service apps by year-end, aligned with the global launch of the Ioniq 3 in the second half of this year.
Vehicle function updates and system controls are managed through an integrated wireless software update (OTA) system centered on the Central Control Unit (CCU). The design ensures that not only infotainment systems but also key control areas for each vehicle model—including body and chassis components—can be safely updated under CCU supervision.
Regarding implementation across different vehicle models, the basic connected system is installed uniformly according to vehicle class, though UI/UX is differentiated based on display form factors. While Hyundai and Kia brand vehicles will feature 16:9 ratio screens, Genesis LINEups will adopt Pleos optimized for wide-screen displays. Additionally, dedicated software apps tailored for high-performance specialized brands such as N and Magma are also planned for future release.
At the seminar hosted by the Association, Hyundai Motor's Pleos and 42Dot development teams participated to present realistic updates on their progress. In particular, they provided detailed explanations of the operational principles and security management framework for 'Gleo AI', an artificial intelligence agent that controls overall vehicle functions based on generative large language models (LLMs). The team also thoroughly conveyed hardware safety measures and user experience (UX) improvements secured during the implementation of SDV infotainment systems to the Association.
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*This content was translated by AI.
