Hyundai Motor Group expands R&D partnership with Singapore

HMGICS, NTU to cooperate on hydrogen, advanced energy systems; HMGICS, NTU, A*STAR to research AI, robotics, 3D printing

Hyundai Engineering & Construction President & CEO Yoon Young-Joon (from left), Hyundai Motor Co. President & CEO Chang Jae-hoon, Minister of Trade, Industry and Energy of the Republic of Korea Ahn Duk-geun, Minister for Manpower and Second Minister for Trade and Industry of Singapore Tan See Leng, NTU Vice President and Professor Lam Khin Yong and NTU Executive Director of Energy Research Institute and Professor Madhavi Srinivasan take a photo after the agreement between Hyundai Motor Group and NTU at the Singapore-Korea Business Forum in Singapore on Oct. 8, 2024 (Courtesy of South Korea’s Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy)

Jae-Fu Kim 2

2024-10-09 17:08:10 hu@hankyung.com

Research & Development

Hyundai Motor Group, the world’s third-largest automaker, has expanded its research partnership with Singapore into energy, artificial intelligence and robotics to develop sustainable mobility solutions.

The South Korean conglomerate with two carmakers – Hyundai Motor Co. and Kia Corp. – said it agreed to jointly research new energy with Nanyang Technological University, Singapore (NTU) on Tuesday.

Hyundai Motor Group and NTU ranked 15th in this year’s Quacquarelli Symonds (QS) World University Rankings to develop alternative energy sources based on the group’s technologies by focusing on hydrogen energy business and advanced energy systems.

The group aims to establish an eco-friendly mobility ecosystem through hydrogen fuel cell electric vehicles and develop technology for power generation with plastic-to-hydrogen and waste-to-hydrogen systems.

“Through this partnership, we aim to accelerate our research in the field of innovative technologies, ultimately enhancing the commercial viability of our sustainable mobility solutions,” said Park Hyun Sung, vice president and CEO of the Hyundai Motor Group Innovation Center Singapore (HMGICS).

The HMGICS, launched last November in western Singapore, is one of the carmaker’s global innovation labs while serving as an electric vehicle manufacturing facility.

Singapore set an ambitious goal to reduce the use of natural gas, which accounts for 95% of its power generation fuel, to 50% by 2035. The city-state expected hydrogen energy and advanced energy systems to play a greater role in achieving this target.

AI, ROBOTICS

Hyundai Motor Group separately agreed with NTU and the Agency for Science, Technology, and Research (A*STAR) to establish a research center to jointly develop innovative manufacturing technologies such as AI, robotics and 3D printing.

The three partners aim to create a collaborative future mobility ecosystem in Singapore.

The group, the university and A*STAR, a statutory board under the Ministry of Trade and Industry of Singapore, signed a cooperation deal to establish a technology development ecosystem 11 months ago.

“We will continue to build on our long-standing partnership with Hyundai Motor Group, leveraging NTU’s core strengths in areas such as sustainable energy, AI, robotics, 3D printing, and advanced materials, to develop innovative and sustainable solutions for Singapore and the global society,” said NTU Vice President and Professor Lam Khin Yong.

Write to Jae-Fu Kim at hu@hankyung.com

Jongwoo Cheon edited this article.