How Sony Plans To Partner With The Auto Industry
Sony has big plans and is making a major push to partner with some of the auto industry's key players, here's how.
Sony had previously made its intentions of making a headlong foray into the auto industry abundantly clear when the company unveiled its very own EV called the Vision-S. A recently confirmed Sony-Honda collaboration signals that Sony is quite serious in its pursuit of launching its very own branded car. However, the tech giant has other plans to shimmy itself into the auto sector in the coming years. According to Ars Technica, Sony wants to position itself as a partner to the auto industry as a whole. The company is aiming to do this by leveraging both its reputation and technical prowess to supply automakers with electric and autonomous vehicle sensors.
Sony has a lofty vision for its newly announced endeavor. Terushi Shimizu, who heads up Sony’s imaging and sensing business, disclosed that the company is aiming to have business relations with 3/4 of the auto industry’s 20 key players by 2025. To make sure their grand aspirations are fully realized, the company is pouring a ton of capital into this growing sector of its business. The company has asserted that through the conclusion of 2023 they plan to invest $7 billion into developing sensors specifically made for electric and autonomous vehicles.
Sony’s move to become a more powerful asset to the auto industry is an advantageous one. First, by diversifying its profile and not laying all of its eggs in one basket, the company is setting up a safety net for itself in the event that one area of its business starts to underperform. That is a smart move, especially in an economic market that is so uncertain at present. Second, they chose a sector of the auto industry that is currently experiencing exponential growth. Solidifying their presence now in a portion of the industry that is still in its infancy is an ideal way to become an integral player in the space. Judging by their actions, Sony fully understands that.
Moreover, by Sony putting a greater focus on supplying parts to the industry instead of only relying on developing and launching their own electric vehicle, it puts them in a better position to be successful with its new goals. Akira Minamikawa, who is a Tokyo-based semiconductor analyst at research firm Omdia, pointed out, “Sony has struggled on the car front at first, but they have been catching up. There have been problems with production capacity…” Because Sony is so new to actually making cars it makes sense that they would experience some growing pains. However, making parts and supplying them to other companies is something that Sony knows how to do and does it well. They have been supplying smartphone parts to tech behemoths like Apple, Google, and Samsung for years. Thus, by those at Sony focusing on what they already know, they will be much more equipped to enter into a space where not everything will be familiar.
Meanwhile, as Sony works its way into the auto sector the company is also working to bolster another established side of its business. It is aiming to ramp up production for the Playstation 5. Since its release, the next-gen console production and rollout have suffered to do pandemic-fueled supply chain shortages and stalwarts. Now, with supplies slowly starting to rebound the company is pushing to get more of its core product out to the eagerly-awaiting masses.
