Sony and Honda will manufacture electric vehicles in 2025

After two prototypes, Sony has officially announced its entry into the electric car market for 2025, collaborating with car manufacturer Honda.

The automotive industry is experiencing a period of rapid growth in new players. Whether it’s Tesla disrupting major groups or new Chinese manufacturers, these 2020s will be the decade of transition. Even some electronics giants are getting involved. After Google, Apple, Foxconn, and Xiaomi, Sony is stepping on the accelerator pedal.

Sony-Honda collaborations starting in 2025

On March 4, 2022, Sony officially announced its first moves into the automotive sector. The Japanese group signed an agreement with Honda, in the form of a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU).

The two parties will create a joint venture for “the development and joint sales of high-value-added battery electric vehicles”. This new brand has yet to be named, possibly “Sony Mobility Inc.” as announced in January. Under this umbrella, the vehicles will “be marketed in conjunction with mobility services”. Consequently, Sony-Honda cars will join the offerings of short and long-term rentals, car-sharing, or robotaxis.

Although the official document is brief, everything will move quickly. The creation of the joint venture will take place in 2022, and the first electric cars will be launched from 2025. For Honda, this is a new large-scale partnership. The automaker had signed an agreement in 2019 with General Motors, for platform and electric vehicle development.

Two concept cars previewing the future

At CES 2020, Sony made a total surprise. No one expected the Japanese giant to participate in this field, but the concept car Vision-S 01 made a splash at the Las Vegas show. This electric sedan with a classic design demonstrated the company’s intention to offer a connected vehicle with semi-automatic driving capabilities of Level 2+.

During the 2022 edition, the Sony Vision-S 02 continued showcasing the brand. This time, a seven-seater SUV with lines similar to the first prototype incorporated onboard technologies. But the company had not yet formalized its automotive objectives, which it announced this week.

The brand was developing in-house technologies derived from experiences in other fields: television, computers, smartphones, cameras, etc. It integrated CMOS and LiDAR sensors into the vehicle for safety systems, 5G connectivity, audio system, and screen interfaces.

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