Autonomous Delivery Robots and AI Music Playback... Four Hyundai Motor In-House Startups Spin Off

Four in-house startups of Hyundai Motor Group are starting anew as independent companies.

On the 9th, Hyundai Motor Group announced the spin-off of four promising in-house startups: ▲Mobinn ▲Aplayz ▲SURFF Company ▲CaREDIT.

The four startups that have spun off this time are ▲Mobinn, which develops autonomous delivery robots and provides last-mile delivery services ▲Aplayz, a service that selects and plays customized music for each space based on artificial intelligence ▲SURFF Company, which operates a real-time sharing and brokerage platform for ship cargo space among logistics companies ▲CaREDIT, which provides solutions to predict vehicle parts lifespan and maintenance costs through vehicle data analysis.

Mobinn offers last-mile specialized services using its self-developed autonomous delivery robots. The delivery robots developed by Mobinn can deliver orders to customers' doors anytime and anywhere. Equipped with rubber wheels, they can freely climb stairs and use LiDAR and cameras to enable autonomous driving day and night. With no movement restrictions, they are expected to be highly versatile in various fields such as parcel delivery, food delivery, and patrol in the future.

Aplayz operates a service that automatically selects and plays customized music for each space based on artificial intelligence technology. This service reflects external factors such as time and weather, as well as the purpose, characteristics, and preferences of visitors identified in real-time through access systems and kiosks within the space to play music accordingly. Hyundai Motor Group's Yangjae headquarters has also applied this service.

SURFF Company developed a platform that shares and trades 'ship cargo space' (called 'seonbok') in real-time to facilitate smooth maritime cargo transportation among logistics companies. Previously, logistics companies had to check directly with shipping companies to find idle cargo space, and if they failed, logistics disruptions occurred or they had to pay costs due to leftover cargo space caused by sudden fluctuations in cargo volume.

The cargo space sharing platform developed by SURFF Company shares the status of cargo space by shipping company and ship in real-time. It brokers transactions of idle cargo space among logistics companies to create a smooth maritime environment.

CaREDIT developed a solution that collects maintenance history data for each vehicle to predict parts remaining lifespan and repair costs. Utilizing big data accumulated from individual vehicle data, it provides diagnostic and repair cost results by simply entering basic vehicle information without inspecting the vehicle's exterior. In the future, it plans to provide databases to the automotive aftermarket, including used car dealers, insurance companies, and vehicle finance companies.

Hyundai Motor Group has been operating the in-house startup nurturing program 'Venture Plaza' since 2000. In 2021, the name was changed to 'Zero1 Company Builder,' and the scope of business selection was expanded beyond the automotive field to various sectors.

Selected startups receive up to 300 million KRW in development costs and undergo a one-year product/service development and commercialization period, after which the decision is made whether to spin off or commercialize within the company. To encourage active challenges, re-employment opportunities are also provided for up to three years after spin-off.

A Hyundai Motor Group official said, "So far, a total of 76 teams have been selected and nurtured, and 30 companies have spun off independently as of this year," adding, "We will continue to produce innovative and creative startups in various fields through active open innovation activities."