November 28, 2024

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SsangYong Motor’s Torres EVX (SsangYong Motor)

The upcoming Seoul Mobility Show will unveil a wide range of innovative transportation spanning from new electric vehicles to air taxis, the organizing committee said Thursday.

The 11-day exhibition, slated for March 30 - April 9, is scheduled to take place at Kintex in Gyeonggi Province.

More than 160 mobility companies including automakers, mobility service providers and mobility software companies across 10 countries will participate in the event, a 60 percent jump from a year earlier, according to the Seoul Mobility Show committee.

Seo Jang-seok, the committee's secretary general, said he expects the show to draw more than 500,000 visitors this year.

“This year, we expect to see twice as many visitors as last year and further spur interest in next-generation technology and green mobility,” Seo said during a press conference in Seoul.

Among the 12 carmakers, Hyundai’s smaller affiliate Kia plans to debut its brand-new all-electric sport utility vehicle EV9, while SsangYong Motor will make a comeback to the show for the first time in four years with the new EVX, the electrified version of its flagship midsize SUV Torres.

As for foreign brands, BMW will showcase its first prototype of the hydrogen-powered iX5, while the US-based Alpha Motor will unveil its EV pickup trucks Wolf and Wolf Plus at the event for the first time.

SK Telecom, Korea’s leading mobile carrier, looks to offer a virtual urban air mobility experience. Visitors can put on VR goggles for a virtual ride in the air taxi. The company will also introduce Nugu Auto, its artificial intelligence-based platform for cars.

UAM manufacturing company V Space, whose flying car was the first to have successfully completed a pilot flight in Korea, plans to unveil a new vertical take-off and landing passenger air vehicle. The batteries installed in the vehicle will be shown at the exhibition as well.

KAIST plans to show its self-driving ship, while US-based Ghost Robotics will display its four-legged robot Vision 60, which is currently used as a military robot.

Separately during the event, visitors can customize their own avatars in the metaverse through platforms provided by Inventis and Ketaverse, the committee said.

Fueled by the electrification transition from combustible engine vehicles to clean cars, the Seoul Motor Show in 2021 changed its name to Seoul Mobility Show.

By Byun Hye-jin (hyejin2@heraldcorp.com)