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| Apple Car concept (Image Credit: Concept Creator / LetsGoDigital) |
Hyundai Motor said it in was in early discussions with Apple
after Korea Economic Daily TV reported that the two were in talks to cooperate
on electric cars and batteries, sending Hyundai's shares surging 24 percent.
"Apple and Hyundai are in discussions but they are at
an early stage and nothing has been decided," Hyundai Motor said in a
statement. The company did not give details about the nature of the talks with
Apple and did not mention whether the cooperation involved electric vehicles.
Apple declined to comment.
In December, Reuters reported that the Apple is moving
forward with self-driving car technology and is aiming to as early as 2024
produce a passenger vehicle that could include its own breakthrough battery
technology.
The two companies work together on CarPlay, Apple's software
for connecting iPhone models to vehicles from a variety of automakers.
The Korea Economic Daily TV said on Friday that Apple and
Hyundai Motor Group were negotiating and that the companies were expected to
develop batteries at either Hyundai's or its affiliate Kia Motors's factories
in the United States.
Shares of Hyundai Motor and its affiliates popped in South
Korea.
Hyundai Motor rose 19.42%, Hyundai Wia added 21.33%, Hyundai
Mobis gained 18.06% and Hyundai Glovis was up 0.75%. Shares of Hyundai
affiliate Kia Motors, which is the second-largest automobile manufacturer in
South Korea, surged 8.41.
The broader KOSPI market was up 1.9 percent as of 01:32 GMT
(7:02am IST).
“Apple outsourcing car production to Hyundai makes sense,
because (the Korean firm) is known for quality,” said Jeong Yun-woo, a former
designer at Hyundai.
The South Korean company is set to introduce its first EV,
Ioniq 5, built on a dedicated platform. Hyundai and its Kia unit are together
planning to launch up to 23 new EV models and aim to sell 1 million units by
2025.