Sony unveiled a new EV prototype called Afeela during a presentation at CES in Las Vegas on Wednesday. This vehicle, which was initially announced in October, will be produced by Sony and Honda’s joint mobility venture. Afeela will be the first production electric car released under the joint venture and is set to be available for purchase in North America in 2026.
Yasuhide Mizuno, CEO of Sony Honda Mobility, said the company will start taking pre-orders for the vehicle in the first half of 2025 and deliver the first cars in North America in spring 2026. He said the car would leverage Sony’s expertise in AI, entertainment, virtual reality, and augmented reality to offer a unique experience.
“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.
It was also revealed the Japanese Conglomerate working closely with Qualcomm on the car’s processing capabilities. Further, Epic Games has teamed up with Sony to incorporate their technologies, including Unreal Engine 5, into the Afeela electric car. Unreal Engine 5 will be used in the operating system of the vehicle, specifically for rendering the infotainment cluster and the animations displayed on the car’s screens.
Sony and Honda announced their joint venture, in which the two companies will work together on automotive and mobility technologies, in March of 2022. The partnership combines Honda’s expertise in car production, mobility technology, and sales with Sony’s knowledge in imaging, networking, sensors, and entertainment. The Afeela electric car will be manufactured at one of Honda’s 12 plants in the United States.
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