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HONDA and Sony have announced a new joint venture this week to develop and sell electric vehicles.
Under the memorandum of understanding announced on March 4, the companies said they will form a new company this year that will create and commercialise “high value-added” battery electrics whose sales will commence in 2025.
It is understood the new company intends to sell battery electric vehicles in Europe, Japan and the United States, but at this stage has not divulged a production location nor any volume targets for its new vehicles.
“This maybe an unprecedented approach,” Honda CEO Toshihiro Mibe said.
“It was so difficult to take a bold step outside, but through this new joint venture, we can create new, unexpected value, stimulating the strategy of Honda.”
Automotive News suggests the combination of Honda and Sony could provide Japan with a challenger model to the growing number of Chinese and US-based electric vehicles marques now available across the globe.
It is understood Honda will contribute its expertise in body manufacturing, distribution and after-sales support while Sony will bring is knowhow in imagine, sensing, telecommunications, networking and entertainment technologies to the fore.
The new JV will plan, design, develop and sell EVs, but for now at least, will not operate its own assembly plant. Honda will be responsible for manufacturing the first EV model, the new partners said, and the vehicle will utilise a mobility service platform developed by Sony.
“Although Sony and Honda are companies that share many historical and cultural similarities, our areas of technological expertise are very different,” Mr Mibe added.
“Therefore, I believe this alliance, which brings together the strengths of our two companies, offers great possibilities for the future of mobility.”
The announcement of the joint venture comes as Honda takes steps to bolster its position in a rapidly changing automotive industry. The company has already said it will offer an all-electric vehicle range by 2040 and that forming new partnerships, even with technologies companies outside the automotive sector, would be key to its transformation.
Sony recently showed its desires to enter the automotive space, unveiling its second concept model at the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas earlier this year. In January, Sony also created a company called Sony Mobility Inc. to handle its dive into cars.
Sony CEO Kenichiro Yoshida said told Automotive News that new mobility technology will be a ‘megatrend’ over the coming decade, just as the advancement of smartphones was in the decade prior.
“It’s like a chemical reaction, combining Honda and Sony,” Mr Yoshida said.
“Going forward, mobility will become increasingly similar to the mobile phone sector, from the perspective of both technology and the business model. We intend to build on our vision to ‘make the mobility space an emotional one’ and contribute to the evolution of mobility centred around safety, entertainment, and adaptability,” he concluded.
Keyword: Honda and Sony to team up on EVs