Last March, Hyundai signed a memorandum of
understanding with Russian technology company Yandex to jointly develop Level 4
and Level 5 autonomous vehicles. Apparently, the two companies got to work immediately, as Yandex has
released a video of a self-driving 2020 Sonata prototype testing in its
open-air lab. The initial goal of the collaboration was to build an autonomous
prototype based on a Hyundai or Kia model and, as you can see, that has already
been accomplished.
According to Yandex, the new Sonata was chosen
because its platform allows for easy integration of the self-driving technology
and hardware with minimal modifications. The team in Russia received the first
Sonata at the end of May 2019 and started work on the prototype with Hyundai
Mobis engineers.
Initial testing took place on Yandex’s closed
testing grounds where the autonomous Sonata has been driving 24/7 in fully
autonomous mode. Currently, the self-driving Sonata is tested in various
weather conditions and simulated traffic situations with other self-driving
cars on the tracks.
The plan is to start operating the vehicle on
Moscow’s streets “shortly.” The 2020 Sonata will be part of Yandex’s autonomous
fleet which is expected to reach 100 vehicles by the end of this year. Thanks
to the partnership with Hyundai Mobis, more self-driving Hyundai and Kia models
will join the fleet in the future.
