Hyundai, Kia invest extra $1.5 mn in automotive chip startup

Hyundai Motor Co. and Kia Corp. announced on Wednesday that they have invested extra 2 billion won ($1.54 million) in BOS Semiconductors, a vehicle semiconductor development startup.

BOS Semiconductors is a fabless that designs and develops system semiconductors tailored to the software and requirements of customers in the automotive industry.

It is recognized as a company highly competitive in important areas such as high-performance, low-power semiconductor design technology for vehicle applications, safety and reliability-related technologies and AI semiconductor technology required for autonomous driving.

Hyundai and Kia had previously invested in BOS Semiconductors in August last year through the Open Innovation Platform Zero One No. 2 Fund established for startup investment.

The latest investment follows the Simple Agreement for Future Equity (SAFE) approach, where funds are provided to startups whose valuation is difficult to determine initially, and the investor's stake is determined based on the valuation established when subsequent investments are enlisted.

Hyundai and Kia plan to strengthen strategic collaboration with BOS Semiconductors and drive the development of customized vehicle semiconductors applicable to electric and self-driving vehicles.

Write to Hyung-Kyu Kim at khk@hankyung.com