During Sony’s presentation at CES 2023 in Las Vegas on Wednesday, the joint mobility venture between Sony and Honda showcased a brand-new electric vehicle prototype entitled Afeela.
The nameplate will be on the joint venture’s first electric vehicle that will be sold in North America in 2026.
The CEO of Sony Honda Mobility, Yasuhide Mizuno, claimed the vehicle would draw on Sony’s expertise in artificial intelligence, entertainment, virtual reality, and augmented reality to deliver a distinctive EV.
“Afeela represents our concept of an interactive relationship where people feel the sensation of interactive mobility and where mobility can detect and understand people and society by utilizing sensing and AI technologies,” Mizuno said.
More than 40 sensors, including cameras, radar, ultrasonic, and lidar, will be integrated into the outside of the car to improve its capacity for object detection and self-driving.
Afeela will make an effort to exemplify the three key concepts of autonomy, augmentation, and affinity claims Mizuno.
The prototype that was displayed on stage resembled the idea that Sony first unveiled at CES three years prior.
Instead, it was a sedan with a high-gloss black roof, a light bar across the front, and a closed-off grille.
Some of the more intriguing exterior elements included black hubcaps and a light accent over the wheel wells.
The Afeela prototype was compared by a number of onlookers as a cross between the Porsche 911 and the Lucid Air.
The new EV will be priced to rival models from Mercedes-Benz, BMW, Volvo, and Audi as well as other luxury automakers.
According to Sony, its software will likely offer subscription services, meaning car owners will probably have to pay a monthly charge to access particular functions.
Three years ago, Sony surprised CES spectators by introducing the elegant Vision-S concept automobile.
The Vision-S was designed to show off what a Sony car may look like with its pillar-to-pillar touchscreen screens and concentration on (what else?) music and entertainment. Which, it reassured everyone, was not what it intended to do.
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