Honda, Sony forming a new company to develop and sell electric vehicles

Honda and Sony are two of the leading Japanese companies, and they are joining forces to form a new company. The firms revealed on Friday, March 4, that they are planning to engage in a joint venture deal to develop and sell electric vehicles.

CNN Business reported that Honda and Sony's new company is set to be launched later this year, and they are targeting 2025 as the year to make their first deliveries. At this point, the exact details of their deal are reportedly still being negotiated and will be subject to regulatory approval.

With the new company, Sony, which has been best known for its entertainment products and gadgets, has been put in charge of creating a platform that will offer mobility services. However, there was no more information available regarding this arrangement and what the work entails. On the other hand, Honda will be dealing with the production at one of the manufacturing plants.

Now, while most people recognized Sony as a good camera or television brand, it has announced its plans to get into the auto manufacturing business and made its move to officially commence its new business unit not long ago. During the Consumer Electronics Show (CES) in 2020, the company introduced its first prototype vehicle to the public.

Sony created the Vision-S 01 car model and started testing it on the public roads in Europe in December 2020. This year, it took another step on its foray into the auto industry by announcing its plans to establish an EV company and release a sports utility vehicle (SUV).

"Although Sony and Honda are companies that share many historical and cultural similarities, our areas of technological expertise are very different," Toshihiro Mibe, Honda's chief executive officer, said on Friday. "Therefore, I believe this alliance, which brings together the strengths of our two companies, offers great possibilities,"

Sony's chief executive, Kenichiro Yoshida, also said earlier this year at CES, "With our imaging and sensing, cloud, 5G and entertainment technologies combined with our content mastery, we believe Sony is well-positioned as a creative entertainment company to redefine mobility."

As per Reuters, in his latest interview regarding its partnership with Honda, Yoshida said that with the joint venture, it is aiming to lead the mobility evolution by integrating the company's technology and experience with the carmaker's extensive experience in mobility development as well as vehicle production technologies. Finally, the companies did not disclose information on the financial aspect of their tie-up.