Hyundai's Euisun Chung is awarded Visionary of the Year

Hyundai Motor Group Chairman Euisun Chung, right, poses with Newsweek CEO Dev Pragad in front of a poster of Newsweek's special edition. [HYUNDAI MOTOR GROUP]

Hyundai Motor Group Chairman Euisun Chung was awarded the Visionary of the Year award at the inaugural World’s Greatest Auto Disruptors 2022 held Tuesday by New York-based weekly magazine Newsweek.

The award selects six figures or groups that brought innovative and creative changes to the automotive industry through technology.

Visionary of the Year, one of the six awards, is given to a leader who was evaluated to have taken significant actions to shape the future of the automotive industry for the next 30 years.

“Today’s leading automakers are pushing the boundaries in ways that keep us moving and also capture the imagination,” said Nancy Cooper, global editor in chief at Newsweek.

“The disruptors on this list deserve to be recognized for pushing the industry forward, as well as for their leadership in responding to the challenges brought on by the pandemic.”

Hyundai Motor Group took two more awards from the event Tuesday.

The group’s Architecture Development Center was awarded Research and Development Team of the Year for developing the automaker’s E-GMP, which is a modular platform designed specifically for electric vehicles (EVs).

The group’s Electrified Propulsion Technology Unit was awarded Powertrain Evolution of the Year for developing the 800-voltage battery system that allows EVs to be charged faster.

Jim Farley, CEO of Ford Motor, won the Executive of the Year award, and Alfonso Albaisa, senior vice president at Nissan Motor, responsible for design, took the Designer of the Year award.

"I have always believed cars are a way to connect people," Chung said upon receiving the award.

"There’s nothing more human than the insatiable desire to explore, to imagine and to make progress. Mobility quite literally brings people together. And when we work together, human beings are capable of extraordinary things. Hyundai Motor Group is committed to making our mobility vision a reality to benefit all humanity. We want to enable more time and more space for everyone to do what truly drives them."

Under Chung’s leadership, the Korean automaker, the world's fifth largest, has been elevating its presence in the future mobility industry, which encompasses EVs, robotics and self-driving cars.

Hyundai Motor launched the all-electric Ioniq 5, and Kia , a smaller affiliate of Hyundai Motor, launched the all-electric EV6 last year, both of which won accolades from around the world. The Ioniq 5 was named German and UK car of the year while the EV6 won the Red Dot award for its design early this year.

Hyundai Motor plans to take hold of 7 percent of the global EV market by 2030, launching at least 17 new EV models. Kia said it will launch at least two new EV models every year through 2027.

The Korean automaker is collaborating with Motional, a joint venture between Hyundai Motor and Aptiv, to develop and commercialize a driverless taxi by 2023.

Chung is scheduled to attend the New York International Auto Show on Friday.

BY JIN EUN-SOO [jin.eunsoo@joongang.co.kr]