Hyundai burned by 'Apple Car' negotiation disclosure walk-backs and reframes
The ending of talks between Apple and Hyundai over potential "Apple Car" production was a very public misstep for the car producer, all caused by its lack of discretion.
Apple's demands for secrecy when it is in talks with suppliers and other partners over long-term projects was reinforced by the Hyundai negotiations. The decision to pause talks between the two companies was reportedly caused by the car maker's failure to keep quiet on the negotiations.
Hyundai "might have learned some lessons through this issue," said HI Investment & Securities head of research Koh Tae-bong to Bloomberg. "Keeping internal discussions internal is important."
In January, Hyundai took the unusual decision to confirm it was in talks with Apple, validating that the reports were underway. Hyundai and subsidiary Kia were then forced to distance themselves from the comments.
While negotiations were ongoing, further reports surfaced claiming Hyundai bosses were "agonizing" over the project. There was the suggestion it would hand the project over to Kia entirely, to minimize any impact to the Hyundai brand from becoming a manufacturer of vehicles for other companies.
Later, Hyundai took the further step to confirm rumors that the talks had stopped. It is unclear if the two companies will continue discussions in the future, but it seems unlikely due to the broken trust.
Hyundai is not the only potential partner for Apple for the "Apple Car," with the iPhone maker putting feelers out in other locations. It has allegedly held talks with car makers in Japan, and there is also interest by UK MPs to bring production to the country.
Apple's demands for secrecy when it is in talks with suppliers and other partners over long-term projects was reinforced by the Hyundai negotiations. The decision to pause talks between the two companies was reportedly caused by the car maker's failure to keep quiet on the negotiations.
Hyundai "might have learned some lessons through this issue," said HI Investment & Securities head of research Koh Tae-bong to Bloomberg. "Keeping internal discussions internal is important."
In January, Hyundai took the unusual decision to confirm it was in talks with Apple, validating that the reports were underway. Hyundai and subsidiary Kia were then forced to distance themselves from the comments.
While negotiations were ongoing, further reports surfaced claiming Hyundai bosses were "agonizing" over the project. There was the suggestion it would hand the project over to Kia entirely, to minimize any impact to the Hyundai brand from becoming a manufacturer of vehicles for other companies.
Later, Hyundai took the further step to confirm rumors that the talks had stopped. It is unclear if the two companies will continue discussions in the future, but it seems unlikely due to the broken trust.
Hyundai is not the only potential partner for Apple for the "Apple Car," with the iPhone maker putting feelers out in other locations. It has allegedly held talks with car makers in Japan, and there is also interest by UK MPs to bring production to the country.
Comments
Knowing Apple, this is a big and maybe fatally mistake.
Not really sure they would want to deal with a Tech Tyrsnt like Apple in the log run. They would try to dictate everything which would be quite incredible as they have yet to show anything.
If Apple are epitome of car manufacturers, they should have no issues building their own car. Why give Apple any help whatsoever?
I do not understand why all of you are talking about Hyundai?
It was about a negotiation between Apple and Kia.
Hyundai had a good argument to not make cars for Apple. However, Hyundai forwarded this corporation to Kia.
You know that the company logo Kia was Kia Motors, but now, the logo only covers Kia without Motors.
Kia is no longer a car company, but a mobility company. Mobility means flexibility and open-minded to work with others.
Hyundai and Kia already confirmed to check all possibilites with other IT firms.
We already had detailed information like production in Georgia, investment of $3bil. from Apple, and search of potential partners in the USA etc.
The contract was leaked. That´s what made Apple upset and made Apple pause the negotiation.
Kia was closed to sign. It was a completely dummy fault by Hyundai. I would not wonder if executives - who ever - were fired who leaked all these detailed contents to the media.
My bet: We will see that the negotiation will continue.
Why do you think pro league athletes all have unions?
This account might be close, however.
On the other hand, the Hyundai leaks might have been a big reason this deal didn't happen.