Samsung Electronics and LG Electronics are likely to profit from the new self-driving guidelines released by the United States Department of Transportation earlier this month, some industry watchers in South Korea believe, noting how the two tech giants are already deeply involved in the development of autonomous vehicles in the West even if they aren’t necessarily seeking to become automakers in the foreseeable future. Harman International Industries which became Samsung’s largest foreign acquisition ever earlier this year is presently supplying a number of infotainment systems and general electronics to car manufacturers in the U.S. and is seeking to strengthen its partnership with the industry in the future, whereas Samsung SDI is currently negotiating a battery supply deal with BMW.
LG’s vehicle-related endeavors are still largely centered on electric cars which the Seoul-based company may start manufacturing in the U.S. where it plans to open a new factory in the future. The firm is also an existing supplier of General Motors and provides the Detroit, Michigan-based automaker with various components for nearly a dozen of its contemporary vehicles. Whereas LG has so far been relatively quiet on the self-driving front, Samsung’s interest in this emerging sector has been noticeably growing in recent times, with the company even acquiring a permit to test autonomous driving solutions on public roads in California earlier this year. The flagship division of Samsung Group also established a $300 million self-driving investment fund several weeks back and has repeatedly signaled that it’s seeking to play a major role in what’s believed to be the next technological revolution which could not only fundamentally change transportation but also the global economy as a whole.
While Samsung has been committing significant resources to autonomous driving technologies in recent years, the company remains adamant that it isn’t seeking to follow the likes of Waymo and directly compete with traditional automakers. Instead, the tech giant is presently focusing on software solutions which it’s hoping to integrate into future vehicles. Apart from self-driving technologies, Samsung is also said to be developing various infotainment systems and other services meant to ennoble future vehicles and help them join the growing Internet of Things ecosystem. The Korean conglomerate is expected to publish its consolidated financial report for the third quarter of the year in approximately a month which is when it might share more details on its self-driving ambitions.