Back in January 2022, the 2022 Consumer Electronics Show took place, and many automakers showed up to share what they were working on. Although large machines, automobiles are consumer products at the end of the day, but automakers didn’t stop there. A large chunk of the new automotive technology at the 2022 CES was a presentation on an ecosystem of mobility and digital living spaces. Automakers want to make vehicles consumers can completely personalize and a vessel that can take their digital online lives with them on the road. Infrastructure and robotics and AI were also large topics, and the Hyundai Motor Group, moving forward with its Metaverse projects, such as lunar exploration, recently presented its HMG Smart City master model at the 2022 World Cities Summit in Singapore.

What is a Smart City? Well, what is a smartphone, or a smart car, for that matter? They’re concepts that go beyond the original purpose of the device. A smart phone can do more than place calls – it can call, it can text, record videos and take pictures, surf the web, stream, upload and download, use augmented reality, and there’s more happening every day. So, a Smart City, would have to be more than the hustle and bustle of daily city life, while still being interconnected to get people where they need to go. That’s where an ecosystem of mobility begins.

Most large cities today have some method of public transportation – buses, subways, and trains. Not always that reliable, people also like to have personal mobility, whether their own automotive device or hailing a ride, although prices for such services continue to climb. When it comes to HMG, purpose-built vehicles (PBVs) and robotaxis, HMG is working towards more autonomous driving technology options that will give people more options to get around town, but their major focus is their eVOTL urban aircraft with Uber. It will be a major step towards the Smart City concept, with urban aircrafts to be commercialized in 2028.

But where will urban aircrafts land? Part of the design of the Smart City will be Hub 2.0 towers, encompassing residential and office spaces like apartment buildings and company HQs today, but with AAM ports at the top of the building. This will make it easier for people to shuttle between destinations via the air. From above, consumers will get a good look at the multilayer design of a Smart City. Built in three layers based on population density, with population becoming less cluttered as consumers travel towards the center of a Smart City, with natural landscapes at the center. Think public parks and forests – a concept of a Smart City is to create a city that’s also friendly towards nature.

Working towards carbon neutrality, HMG wants to create Smart Cities that will displace the toxins and carbon emissions of industrial life. That’s why the multi-layer design has been put in place, with city landmarks far away from the nature center. On top of this, HMG wants to create a sustainable green city where natural areas are preserved, including recreational forests, parks, and a water reservoir for fresh, clean water all-year round. Reducing carbon emissions as much as possible, the industrial era gets a huge change with hydrogen, the city’s primary power source of energy, and less harmful to the environment.

“The HMG Smart City master model is our vision for a human-centered city that will revitalize urban communities. In the future smart cities, our ambition is for humankind to live with nature while embracing technology. Our air and ground mobility solutions will redefine urban boundaries, connect people in meaningful ways, and revitalize cities…We will continue to work with governments around the globe to bring our smart city vision to reality, while rapidly advancing capabilities in future mobility solutions.” - Hyundai Motor Group President and Chief Innovation Officer, Youngcho Chi

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