Hyundai will let EV drivers mix things up with new app

Hyundai Motor said Monday that it developed a platform to control the performance abilities of electric vehicles (EVs) through smartphones.

The platform will allow drivers to adjust seven performance settings, including maximum torque, maximum speed limit and starting acceleration.

Compared to conventional vehicles that are able to change driving settings through pre-set features on driving modes such as sports mode, Hyundai said that the new platform gives drivers the chance to change the settings themselves.

The technology will also recommend driving settings by calculating distances and leftover charge.

The automaker said it expects the platform to become important when it becomes available in the future with car-sharing services on the rise.

“The share of EVs in the car-sharing service is expected to rise and this technology will allow drivers to simply download their settings from the server even if the models are different,” said Hyundai Motor in a statement.

In order to address security concerns surrounding user settings being shared, Hyundai Motor said the platform will incorporate blockchain technology. The automaker will store data in a blockchain network to prevent it from being stolen.

The new platform announcement comes as the automaker group announced targets earlier this year to develop 44 eco-friendly vehicle models, including 23 EVs by 2025.

By Chae Yun-hwan