(Yicai) March 12 -- Hyundai Motor has established a laboratory in Shanghai with Thunder Software Technology, a Chinese firm that develops smart cockpit technology, aiming to drive forward the South Korean auto giant’s software-defined vehicle strategy.

The lab was inaugurated yesterday following an agreement between Hyundai's research and development division, its advanced tech R&D center in China, and Thunder Software.

The partnership aims to localize and enhance Hyundai’s next-generation smart cockpit platform, a key part of the Seoul-based company’s broader SDV strategy, thereby boosting its competitiveness in both domestic and international markets.

“The lab will focus on local market needs and drive the localization of smart cockpit technology,” said Yang Feng, general manager of Hyundai's advanced tech R&D center in China.

The new R&D center will prioritize core technologies such as large language models, intelligent voice interaction, entertainment ecosystems, and navigation, Yang said, adding that later on it will also be dedicated to enhancing the user experience and boosting competitiveness in the field of intelligent connected vehicles, Yang said.

As smart driving and smart cockpit features are having a growing bearing on car-buying, more and more foreign automakers with relatively weaker intelligence capabilities are tying up with Chinese firms on smart technologies.

Thunder Software has also formed a joint venture with Cariad, the auto software unit of Volkswagen Group, to provide operating systems and software services in areas such as smart cockpits, intelligent connectivity, human-machine interaction, and cloud computing. Their alliance aims to promote the localization of the German carmaker's products in China.

ThunderSoft’s proprietary vehicle operating system, Dew OS, forms the backbone of its smart auto technology. The firm’s intelligent auto business had revenue of CNY1.1 billion (USD150 million) in the first half of last year, accounting for 46 percent of the total, according to its most recent earnings report.  

Editors: Tang Shihua, Futura Costaglione