Kia Motors has been granted a licence by the US state of Nevada to carry out testing of its autonomous driving technologies on public roads for the first time in real-world conditions.
Alongside sister company Hyundai, Kia plans to introduce a range of partially-autonomous driving technologies to its model line-up including eco-friendly vehicles by 2020, and is aiming to bring its first fully-autonomous car to market by 2030. The initial stage of investment by Kia and Hyundai – totalling US$2bn by 2018 – will enable the companies to develop new ADAS technologies and employ a greater number of engineers.
Dr Tae-Won Lim, VP of the Central Advanced Research and Engineering Institute of Hyundai Motor Group, commented, “Thanks to this licence we will be able to accelerate the testing of our new autonomous driving technologies that are currently in the early stages of development, with particular emphasis on our alternative powertrain vehicles. We are confident that our latest innovations will ultimately make driving safer for all road users.”
January 5, 2016
