Sony Group Corp unveiled a new high-tech prototype vehicle it is planning to produce in partnership with Honda Motor Co at the CES tech show in Las Vegas on Wednesday.
The vehicle, first announced in October last year, is to be called the Afeela.
Sony Honda Mobility Inc CEO Yasuhide Mizuno said the company expects to take preorders in the first half of 2025 and deliver the first vehicles to customers in North America in the spring of 2026.
Photo: AFP
“As safety and security are essential to mobility, we will integrate Sony’s sensors and the Honda safety along with other intelligent technologies,” Mizuno said.
Sony and Honda announced their 50-50 joint venture in March last year. It unites Honda’s know-how in vehicles, mobility technology and sales with Sony’s imaging, network, sensor and entertainment expertise.
The new company is also collaborating with Qualcomm Inc and Epic Games Inc to enable 5G connectivity and entertainment.
The venture’s first vehicle to roll out on the CES stage was a sedan featuring 45 sensors, including cameras, radar and ultrasonic sensors.
It is “a software-defined vehicle,” Qualcomm CEO Cristiano Amon said at the presentation.
Sony said it would keep the Afeela vehicles constantly updated, and Amon said his company’s Snapdragon Digital Chassis would be designed to enable that.
Epic Games would work with Sony Honda to help “deliver connected automotive experiences that lead the way not only in visual communication and safety, but also entertainment,” Epic Games chief technology officer Kim Libreri said.
Production of the vehicle would take place at one of Honda’s 12 plants in the US. The US was chosen for the launch because electric vehicles are already popular there. Japan came second as Honda’s home market, and other markets, including Europe, would follow, but no dates have been set.
Additional reporting by Bloomberg
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