"This Is the Future Car"… BMW and Hyundai Selected as 'Concept Car of the Year'

KAIST Holds '2022 Future Mobility' Awards Ceremony

KAIST's 2022 Future Mobility Passenger Car Category Winner BMW i Vision Circular

[Asia Economy Reporter Kim Bong-su] "This is the design of the latest future car."

BMW (passenger cars) and Hyundai Kia Automotive Group (commercial vehicles) were selected as this year's future car designs by the Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology (KAIST).

On the afternoon of the 14th, KAIST held the '2022 Future Mobility of the Year awards (FMOTY)' ceremony at the BEXCO International Motor Show Convention Hall in Busan. The 'Future Mobility Award' is a ceremony that selects models showcasing useful transportation technologies and innovative service concepts for future society among concept cars exhibited at global auto shows.

Established by the Cho Chun-sik Mobility Graduate School of KAIST, it is the world's first international concept car award ceremony, with winners selected by automotive journalists from 11 countries. Since the first ceremony in 2019, international automotive companies such as Volvo and Toyota (2019), Honda and Hyundai (2020), Renault and Canoo (2021), as well as emerging startups, have produced award-winning models.

KAIST's 2022 Future Mobility Commercial Vehicle Category Winner Hyundai Trailer Drone

At the 4th awards ceremony held that day, BMW's 'i Vision Circular' and Hyundai's 'Trailer Drone' were selected as the best concept cars of the year in the passenger car and commercial vehicle categories, respectively. The judging panel, composed of 16 domestic and international automotive journalists including Paul Horrell from BBC Top Gear UK, evaluated 53 concept cars submitted last year. Amid the strong trend of electrification in the global automotive market, the award-winning models were praised for presenting new visions in eco-friendly design and logistics automation.

The passenger car category winner, BMW's 'i Vision Circular,' is an eco-friendly compact car designed with all parts made from recycled and natural materials. It received high praise for deeply realizing the future eco-friendly car concept by manufacturing tires from natural rubber and designing parts for easy recycling at the end of the vehicle's life.

The commercial vehicle category winner, Hyundai's 'Trailer Drone,' is an eco-friendly autonomous truck where two unmanned vehicles push and pull a trailer to transport large-scale logistics from ports to destinations without a driver. It showcased a groundbreaking logistics service blueprint by applying eco-friendly hydrogen fuel cells and fully autonomous driving technology, gaining strong support from many judges.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.