There were earlier reports that Hyundai Motor would create a division and jointly invest in a joint venture with Google. The report claims that the investment will go towards the research and development of driverless cars. Following the report, Hyundai Motor's share price soared to 232 won ($000) today, up 205%.
However, in a recent turn of events, Hyundai has an official statement. According to the South Korean car company, the news is not true. This means that there is no agreement between Hyundai and Google. For those hoping to see a Hyundai-Google self-driving car, it's not happening. However, we will have to cross our fingers and see what happens in the future.
According to Bloomberg News, Apple previously held talks with Hyundai Motor to discuss plans to develop the Apple Car. Hyundai Motor took the initiative to break the news. However, Apple later announced that it would end the talks because it was uncomfortable with Hyundai's approach.
Hyundai's global sales are growing
On April 1, Hyundai Motor announced its financial results. In March this year, the company's global vehicle sales reached 375, which is 924% more than the previous year. This is also one of the important reasons for the rise in stock prices today.
According to reports from Nikkei Asia, Apple is in talks with a number of Japanese car manufacturers. It seems that Apple will not limit its cooperation with one manufacturer. There are reports that Apple already has an agreement with the Japanese manufacturer Kia.
"As far as we know, Apple is in talks with a number of global automakers, including Hyundai Motors. As the discussions are still in the early stages, no decision has yet been made.” The company said. Just a few hours later, Hyundai retracted the statement and removed the mention of Apple.
Apparently. Apple is not satisfied with Hyundai's level of professionalism. This is one of the reasons why Apple's discussion with Hyundai is stalled. It is currently unclear if and when discussions between Apple and Hyundai can resume. With all that said, Apple may be forced to reopen discussions with Hyundai if it can't find a suitable replacement. Apple still has some time to figure out manufacturing and production plans. This is because, according to reports, Apple cars will not be official until 3 years from now.
