Korean automobile manufacturer Kia focused on passenger and cargo electric vehicles (EVs) in its press conference event at CES 2024 in Las Vegas.
The company announced to the public how they could help businesses and households looking to go electric with its range of EVs - including vans, trucks, ride-hailing, and last-mile delivery vehicles - all of which are set to be built on a new highly modular platform called Platform Beyond Vehicle (PBV).
Kia's aim to launch such a system was to allow its customers to customize Kia EVs to their specific needs, including swapping out a vehicle's cabin, which the company calls "life modules").
However, the company did not provide details on how its modular system would work.
Introducing the PV5, Other PBV Units
In anticipation of such a range of vehicles, Kia also announced that they would build a dedicated plant exclusively for EVs in South Korea, which they hoped would produce 150,000 vehicles annually.
One of them is its base vehicle, the highly modular Kia PV5 - a three-row EV with futuristic styling slated to hit the road by 2025 at a price tag of around $35,000.
Other vehicles introduced at the CES 2024 were the PV5's enlarged version, the PV7, and the smaller, Smart Car-sized PV1.
The PV7 would be due to hit the roads by 2027, while an autonomous robotaxi version of the PV5 - developed jointly with Motional - could be released by 2028, according to TechCrunch and Engadget.
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Kia's Other Projects, Partnerships
At the onset of the event, Kia President and CEO Song Ho-Sung announced that its EV9 vehicle had been named the 2024 North American Utility Vehicle of the Year and was shortlisted as the 2024 European Car of the Year.
Song also announced the company's sustainability initiatives, such as its contribution to becoming carbon-neutral by 2045 and its project of cleaning the oceans of water pollutants.
Kia vice president of PBV business Pierre-Martin Bos also announced its global partnership with ride-hailing services such as Uber, Coupang, CJ Logistics, Kakao Mobility, and Dubai Taxi Corporation.
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