Hyundai plays catch-up as Tesla strengthens grip on Korea's EV market
Summary
Hyundai Motor is under pressure as Tesla gains ground in Korea’s EV market while Hyundai’s self-driving timeline remains years away. 42dot said Level 2+ cars using Nvidia’s platform will arrive in the first half of 2028, with Level 2++ later that year and Atria AI mass production in the second half of 2029. Tesla’s Full Self-Driving Supervised system is already available in limited form in Korea, and its Model Y was the best-selling passenger vehicle in August with 9,638 new registrations.
Key Facts
- 42dot said Hyundai Motor Group will introduce Level 2+ autonomous driving cars based on Nvidia’s platform in the first half of 2028.
- The group plans to roll out Level 2++ technology later in 2028 and mass-produce vehicles with its Atria AI system in the second half of 2029.
- Tesla’s Full Self-Driving Supervised system is already available in Korea in limited form, although broader domestic operation still needs regulatory approval.
- Tesla’s Model Y recorded 9,638 new registrations in August, making it the best-selling passenger vehicle in Korea.
- An auto industry official said Tesla’s strong sales momentum and BYD’s growing presence are making Korea’s EV market more competitive.
Rise of Tesla, BYD poses increasing threat to domestic EV makers
Hyundai Motor's IONIQ 5 robotaxi equipped with Waymo's self-driving system / Courtesy of Hyundai Motor
Hyundai Motor’s autonomous driving road map is putting its ability to keep pace with Tesla under scrutiny, as the U.S. automaker rapidly gains stronger ground in Korea’s electric vehicle (EV) market.
Last week, Hyundai Motor Group’s self-driving arm — 42dot — said it will introduce cars with Level 2+ autonomous driving technology based on Nvidia’s platform in the first half of 2028, followed by Level 2++ technology later that year. Vehicles equipped with the carmaker’s proprietary Atria artificial intelligence (AI) system will also be mass-produced in the second half of 2029, according to 42dot.
Under the road map, the automaker seeks to close the gap with Tesla and other overseas autonomous driving leaders. But the timeline for Hyundai Motor's self-driving commercialization still leaves much to be desired, as Tesla has already turned into a consumer-facing product.
Tesla’s Full Self-Driving (FSD) Supervised system is already available in Korea in limited form, although regulatory approval for its broader domestic operation remains a key hurdle.
Tesla has also been expanding its software strategy through monthly FSD subscriptions, bringing autonomous driving functions closer to a recurring consumer service, rather than simply a hardware feature.
The timing is particularly unfavorable for the Korean carmaker.
Tesla’s Model Y was the best-selling passenger vehicle in Korea in August, with 9,638 new registrations.
That performance suggests Tesla’s competitive threat is no longer limited to the premium imported car segment. The China-made Model Y is increasingly competing directly for mainstream Korean EV buyers, intensifying rivalry in the market for software-defined vehicles and EVs.
Hyundai argues that safety must come before speed. The carmaker said its global fleet of more than 7 million vehicles annually will eventually give it a major data advantage.
Hyundai Motor's electric vehicles used for its autonomous driving demonstration and relevant data collection / Courtesy of Hyundai Motor
But that advantage remains a future proposition.
For consumers deciding what EV to buy now, the relevant question is not which automaker may have the largest autonomous driving dataset in the next few years.
That creates a difficult two-year window for Hyundai. If Korean regulators eventually allow Tesla’s supervised FSD system to operate more broadly on domestic roads, Hyundai is feared to lose more ground to Tesla in the nation’s EV market.
The risk is not merely that Hyundai could lose the autonomous driving race. It could lose EV customers before its own technology has enough time to catch up.
“Tesla’s strong sales momentum and BYD’s growing presence suggest Korea’s EV market is already becoming more competitive,” an official from the auto industry said. “For Hyundai Motor Group, therefore, the challenge is no longer simply developing safe autonomous driving technology. The timing also gets more and more significant.”
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