Stellantis and Foxconn agree to form Mobile Drive JV – focus on infotainment and connected car technology

Stellantis and Foxconn (also referred to as Hon Hai Precision Industry) have announced the signing of a non-binding memorandum of understanding to form a new joint venture, with each having an equal share of voting rights (50:50). The joint venture will see the formation of Mobile Drive, which will be based in the Netherlands and involve Foxconn’s subsidiary, FIH Mobile.

Despite earlier suggestions the joint venture will be centred around electric vehicles, Mobile Drive will actually focus on infotainment, telematics, cloud service platform development and in-vehicle connectivity offerings.

Combining Stellantis’ vehicle design and engineering expertise with Foxconn’s development in software and hardware realms of smartphones and electronic devices, the resulting technologies originating from Mobile Drive could be used in future vehicles. Both companies have worked together in the past on the Airflow Vision concept that was presented at last year’s Consumer Electronics Show (CES).

Airflow Vision Concept

“Today, there’s something that matters just as much as beautiful design or innovative technology, it’s how the features inside our vehicles improve the lives of our customers. Software is a strategic move for our industry and Stellantis intends to lead with Mobile Drive, a company that will enable the swift development of connectivity features and services that mark the next great evolution of our industry, just as electrification technology has,” said Carlos Tavares, CEO of Stellantis.

“The vehicles of the future will be increasingly software driven and software defined. Customers today and, in the future, demand and expect ever increasing software driven and creative solutions to connect the drivers and passengers with the vehicle inside and out,” commented Young Liu, chairman at Foxconn.

“Mobile Drive will meet and exceed these expectations with teams of designers and software and hardware engineers. This is a natural extension of Foxconn’s global leadership in the development and application of smart technologies to improve the quality of life of consumers around the world,” he added.

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