Hyundai Motor, Seoul Univ. to establish Future Automotive Mobility

Hyundai Motor Co. and Seoul National University have joined forces to cultivate talent in electric vehicle control and vehicle software, which are essential for the future mobility industry.

Both signed an agreement to establish the Department of Future Automotive Mobility Studies. This is a master's program established by Seoul National University in collaboration with a corporation, focusing on specialized training in two fields: electric vehicle control and vehicle software.

This department is linked to the "Future-oriented Automotive Technology Convergence Innovative Talent Development Project," initiated by the Ministry of Education and the Ministry of Industry, Trade and Energy, aimed at nurturing undergraduate talents with the same objective.

Hyundai Motor and Seoul National University signed this agreement to respond to the changing landscape of the mobility industry driven by the acceleration of software-defined vehicle (SDV) development.

As a result, they plan to recruit first-year students in the second half of this year for the 2024 academic year, with plans to admit 20 students annually thereafter. Upon completing the two-year master's program, these students will join Hyundai Motor as employees.

Considering the increasing importance of combining hardware and software in product planning and engineering, Hyundai Motor and Seoul National University intend to jointly develop and operate the curriculum with a focus on this field.

The curriculum will encompass subjects such as electric vehicle engineering, electric vehicle system design, SDV cloud computing, vehicle control and application software, including autonomous driving.

Incoming students will be provided with full scholarships for two years, participation in industry-academia projects, visits to overseas research institutes, mentoring from industry professionals and opportunities to pursue doctoral programs for outstanding candidates.

"The competitive edge of future mobility technology is determined by securing talent in software areas like electric vehicles and SDV," President of Hyundai Motor Kim Yong-Hwa said. "We will spare no effort in supporting the cultivation of excellent mobility professionals based on Seoul National University's practical education."

Hyundai Motor is accelerating its efforts in building a development system for SDVs, which includes plans to transition all vehicle models to SDVs by 2025, focusing on electric vehicles.

Write to Hyung-Kyu Kim at khk@hankyung.com