Kia Corporation

• Hyundai Motor Group invites startups to apply for the 2024 first-half innovation program to collaborate with Hyundai and Kia on future technologies 
• Startups can apply to one of seven projects under three different tech themes, including Software-Defined Vehicle, Smart Factory, and ESG
• Submissions are to be accepted from February 19 to March 10, and results will be announced in April

Hyundai Motor Group (the Group) announced its 2024 first-half ZER01NE Accelerator program, an open innovation platform to facilitate collaboration between startups and the Group on various projects. This program aims to discover valuable startups and explore the possibilities of strategic use of their innovative technologies.

Startups can apply to one of seven global projects derived by the Group’s internal teams under three key themes: two Software-Defined Vehicle (SDV) projects, two Smart Factory projects, and three Environmental·Social·Governance (ESG) projects. Each startup is limited to one specific project. 

The Group’s organizations that are responsible for technology developments are directly involved in reviewing and recruiting the applicants for each project. Only registered corporations will be eligible for consideration and can submit their proposal on the official application website from February 19 to March 10. Results will be announced in April.

Selected startups will be provided with a project development budget and could be evaluated for equity investments.

Since the Group introduced the ZER01NE Accelerator in 2018, 150 teams from 11 affiliates of the Group and 177 startups have worked together on 128 collaborative projects. This has led to 96 startups successfully receiving equity investments from the Group.

Last year, three global startups were selected and are currently engaged in collaborative projects focused on lithium metal battery, teleoperation, and cold-spray metal 3D printing solutions.

More details about the ZER01NE Accelerator can be found on the program’s official website.