Hyundai Motor Company is working hard to reduce emissions from the Earth's thermal energy by harnessing the most abundant elements in the universe. The South Korean automaker announced that hydrogen will be part of the company's efforts to become carbon neutral by 2050"Play an important role"。
Hyundai Motor Company President and CEO Jay Chang said in a statement:"Clean hydrogen should work for everyone, power everything, and be available everywhere. "
As the automotive industry transitions to electric vehicles, more and more companies are also adopting hydrogen fuel cell technology as part of their plans to eliminate tailpipe emissions. Honda, Toyota, GM and Hyundai have all developed detailed plans to produce fuel cell vehicles, both for personal and commercial use.
Hyundai is not a newcomer to the hydrogen space. The company calls itself"Be at the forefront of hydrogen power", which has been mass-producing fuel cell electric vehicles for many years. Hyundai Motor Company says it now"It has the highest market share in the world in the sales of hydrogen-powered vehicles"。
Hyundai says it will use hydrogen in its production of passenger cars, trucks and buses, as well as trams, special equipment, ships, generators and advanced air mobility.
The company will spearhead this shift with its hydrogen fuel cell systems brand, HTWO, which will be first launched in 2020. With HTWO, Hyundai expects to absorb 3 million tons of hydrogen annually by 2035 for logistics, steel production, and power generation.
Hydrogen fuel cells use compressed hydrogen as fuel, and the only emissions are water vapor. However, one of the biggest challenges is the lack of hydrogen charging and refueling infrastructure, especially in North America.
Although the technology has been developed for decades, there are just over 50 hydrogen refueling stations in California, mostly concentrated in Los Angeles and the Bay Area. The East Coast is also trying to join the bandwagon, with a number of hydrogen fueling stations already in operation, and more in New York, New Jersey, Massachusetts, Connecticut and Rhode Island.
Hydrogen has a low energy content by volume, which makes hydrogen storage a challenge, as it requires high pressure, low temperatures, or chemical processes to be stored compactly. Overcoming this challenge is important for light-duty vehicles, which tend to have limited size and weight in terms of fuel storage.
Hyundai has also laid the groundwork for its software development, announced"Software defines everything"Strategy,"Designed to transform all mobile devices, fleets, and ecosystems into valuable assets through advanced software and artificial intelligence"。
Other automakers are also developing software-defined vehicles as they rush to compete with Tesla, which has begun to define what customers expect from automotive software. Tesla's philosophy is that cars are sold with only the underlying hardware, and their functionality is largely determined by software, which can be updated and improved through over-the-air upgrades.
Hyundai Motor is the latest company to adopt this initiative. The company said"From car development to building an entire mobility ecosystem, everything is transitioning to a software-defined approach"。This involves new approaches to infotainment, including the development of application libraries and software development kits (SDKs) for developers to create"Killer app"。
Of course, this will also include artificial intelligence. Hyundai says it will integrate a large language model into the in-car voice assistant to enable more natural interaction between the car and the driver. The company recently took a $100 million stake in artificial intelligence chipmaker Tenstorrent to demonstrate that commitment.