Korean Report Says Kia Partnership With Apple Still Possible

Apple and Hyundai subsidiary Kia signed a memorandum of understanding last year, agreeing to pursue cooperation in eight sectors, including electric vehicles, according to a new report from South Korean news site Chosun Biz, cited by Reuters.

kia featured
Earlier this month, following weeks of rampant "Apple Car" rumors, Hyundai and Kia in regulatory filings said they are not in discussions with Apple to co-operate on development of a self-driving electric vehicle. This came just weeks after Hyundai released a statement indicating that Apple was in talks with a number of automakers, including Hyundai, regarding development of autonomous electric vehicles.

Today's report suggests a partnership may still be possible for Kia, claiming that negotiations with Apple "are not completely canceled," although the talks are said to be "experiencing difficulties." The scope of the negotiations is "wide" with room to grow, according to the report. Apple and Kia could end up partnering on "last mile" transportation with Kia's electric scooters, for example, rather than a full-out vehicle.

In any case, the "Apple Car" is believed to be years away from release, with estimates ranging from 2024 all the way to 2028.

Tag: Kia

Popular Stories

Aston Martin CarPlay Ultra Screen

Apple's CarPlay Ultra to Expand to These Vehicle Brands Later This Year

Sunday February 1, 2026 10:08 am PST by
Last year, Apple launched CarPlay Ultra, the long-awaited next-generation version of its CarPlay software system for vehicles. Nearly nine months later, CarPlay Ultra is still limited to Aston Martin's latest luxury vehicles, but that should change fairly soon. In May 2025, Apple said many other vehicle brands planned to offer CarPlay Ultra, including Hyundai, Kia, and Genesis. In his Powe...
Apple Logo Black

Apple Just Made Its Second-Biggest Acquisition Ever After Beats

Thursday January 29, 2026 10:07 am PST by
Apple today confirmed to Reuters that it has acquired Q.ai, an Israeli startup that is working on artificial intelligence technology for audio. Apple paid close to $2 billion for Q.ai, according to sources cited by the Financial Times. That would make this Apple's second-biggest acquisition ever, after it paid $3 billion for the popular headphone and audio brand Beats in 2014. Q.ai has...
Apple Logo Black

Apple's Next Launch is 'Imminent'

Sunday February 1, 2026 12:31 pm PST by
The calendar has turned to February, and a new report indicates that Apple's next product launch is "imminent," in the form of new MacBook Pro models. "All signs point to an imminent launch of next-generation MacBook Pros that retain the current form factor but deliver faster chips," Bloomberg's Mark Gurman said on Sunday. "I'm told the new models — code-named J714 and J716 — are slated...
14 inch MacBook Pro Keyboard

Apple Changes How You Order a Mac

Saturday January 31, 2026 10:51 am PST by
Apple recently updated its online store with a new ordering process for Macs, including the MacBook Air, MacBook Pro, iMac, Mac mini, Mac Studio, and Mac Pro. There used to be a handful of standard configurations available for each Mac, but now you must configure a Mac entirely from scratch on a feature-by-feature basis. In other words, ordering a new Mac now works much like ordering an...
Apple MacBook Pro M4 hero

New MacBook Pros Reportedly Launching Alongside macOS 26.3

Sunday February 1, 2026 5:42 am PST by
Apple is planning to launch new MacBook Pro models with M5 Pro and M5 Max chips alongside macOS 26.3, according to Bloomberg's Mark Gurman. "Apple's faster MacBook Pros are planned for the macOS 26.3 release cycle," wrote Gurman, in his Power On newsletter today. "I'm told the new models — code-named J714 and J716 — are slated for the macOS 26.3 software cycle, which runs from...

Top Rated Comments

frozen220 Avatar
65 months ago
Kia has proven itself to be a competitive and reliable car company, especially in the last 5 years. Most People who speak ill of Kia clearly haven’t had one in the last 10 years. They’ve come a looooong way. Reliability and design is now among the top. Take a look at the Telluride, and the new 2021 Sorento. This isn’t your grandmother’s Kia.
Score: 5 Votes (Like | Disagree)
moabal Avatar
65 months ago
Man this story just keeps getting more interesting. It’s like a reality tv show.

Which car brand will Apple give the rose to?
Score: 4 Votes (Like | Disagree)
now i see it Avatar
65 months ago
And in other news:
[HEADING=2]Hyundai will recall 82,000 Kona EVs to replace batteries[/HEADING]
Score: 2 Votes (Like | Disagree)
ipedro Avatar
65 months ago
Hyundai/KIA were given a time out and made to think that Apple could pick someone else because they broke the sacred first rule of Apple Club that you don’t talk about Apple Club.

In the end, Tim Cook will make the best decision for the company and if that’s KIA, then he’ll call them back after they’ve had their time out.
Score: 2 Votes (Like | Disagree)
ericwn Avatar
65 months ago
KIA is a joke in the UK.
It has to be as there is no Rover anymore to laugh about.
Score: 2 Votes (Like | Disagree)
BigMac? Avatar
65 months ago
Yeah, KIA-Hyundai Corp is a great choice.
another possibility could be working with Magna Corporation (they are building high quality cars for many different carmakers like:

* Jaguar E-Pace, since 2017.
* BMW 5er (G30), since 2017.
* Mercedes-Benz G-Klasse, W463, since 2018.
* Jaguar I-Pace, since 2018.
* BMW Z4 (G29), since 2018.
* Toyota Supra, since 2019.
Score: 2 Votes (Like | Disagree)