While Tesla lays off more than 10 % of its workforce, South Korea’s Hyundai Motor Group plans to hire 80, 000 new employees, increasing its headcount by about 30 % over the next three years.
The hiring is a significant component of a$ 68 trillion won ( US$ 50 billion ) investment program intended to establish a leading position in software-defined and electric vehicles.
Similar to smartphones, software-defined electric vehicles ( EVs ) can be wirelessly updated via data centers for cloud computing. Eventually, Hyundai plans to use this technology to all of its automobiles.
Additionally, investment money will be used to fund research and development for automatic moving, battery-powered vehicles, and other mobility-related projects. The Hyundai Motor Group spent about 30 % more on the purchase each year than it did last season.
After Toyota and Volkswagen, Hyundai and its affiliates Kia are the third-largest auto manufacturing alliance in the world. Hyundai Motor Group clients include Hyundai Steel, a shipping firm, Hyundai Mobis, and Hyundai Steel, two different companies that make car parts. Hyundai Motor owns about 34 % of Kia.
In 2023, Hyundai- Kia sold 7.1 million customer cars – about two- quarters as many as Toyota, 15 % more than General Motors, 2.7 periods more than BYD and 4.2 periods more than Tesla.
Hyundai-Kia surpassed Ford and GM to become the second-largest Vehicle seller in the US last season. In the US, it is also working on battery and EV production, starting with variants.
Hyundai and Kia have come to a 10-year agreement with Baidu to develop a new related, self-driving, and software-defined vehicle network in accordance with government regulations in China. Toyota collaborates with Tencent, while Bahrainu even works for Tesla.
According to AskCI Consulting, 17 million connected cars may be sold in China this year, according to the company’s study. That accounts for close to two-thirds of China’s complete new car sales, or more than US total new car sales.
Hyundai- Kia may join the challenge from Tesla, Toyota, Baidu and another Foreign competitors in the nation’s largest car market.
In January, at the Consumer Electronics Show ( CES ) in Las Vegas, Hyundai demonstrated its artificial intelligence, software- defined vehicle and hydrogen fuel cell technologies. Toyota leads Honda in the developing industry for hydrogen-powered cars.
Operating profit is down 2.5 % while revenues are up 7.6 % year over year, according to Hyundai Motor’s consolidated results for the first quarter of 2024.
The Asan factory’s production was suspended for a number of weeks while facilities were being converted to Electric production, leading to the income decline. Hybrid vehicle sales increased by 16.6 %, despite strong North American demand, but overall unit sales decreased by 1.5 %, despite this increase.
These results outperformed Tesla, which saw a 56 % decline in operating profit and a 9 % year-on-year decline in revenues in the three months to March.
BYD’s revenues and net profit were up 4.0 % and 10.6 % year on year, but down 43 % and 47 % from the December quarter. The operating income increased by 4.4 % while Hyundai Motor’s income decreased by 2.4 % quarter over quarter.
Toyota outperformed all of them. The world’s largest manufacturer reported a 21 % increase in revenues and a 95 % increase in operating profit for the fiscal year that ended in March 2024. The weak yen contributed only 26 % of the increase in operating profit, with the majority of it being attributable to a better sales mix and price increases in North America and Europe.
Toyota’s product sales were up 7.3 % next fiscal year to a record high of 10.3 million. According to management, deliveries of hybrid and other electrified vehicles increased by 35 % to 36 % of the total, up from 30 % the previous year.
Deliveries increased by only 3 % in Asia, but increased by 17 % in North America and 16 % in Europe, respectively. A 1 % increase in sales in China was supported by strong hybrid demand, which only contributed to the 7 % decline in operating profit there.
In line with its collaboration with Tencent, Toyota plans to invest 2 trillion yen ($ 12.8 billion ) this fiscal year in artificial intelligence and autonomous driving, battery electric vehicles, hydrogen fuel cells and other mobility technology.
As Asia Times reported in January, Volkswagen is even forging onward in China. The top three automakers in the world are moving target for Tesla and BYD, no just passives.
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