Sony and Honda’s electric vehicle joint venture gained more attention this week at CES, where the two companies unveiled a new prototype and confirmed Afeela as the brand for the joint venture.
Looks a bit different from Concept Sony Vision-WORLD First shown in 2020, the sleek prototype previews a production model slated to start pre-ordering in 2025, with full sales later in the year and deliveries. first in North America in the spring of 2026.
Defined by smooth angles, the sedan prototype features a rearview mirror camera and front and rear light bars that communicate with the outside world through changing light patterns, and also serve to greet pick up the driver when approaching the vehicle.
Afeela electric sedan prototype
Inside, the car has many screens. The screens cover the entire dashboard, including the front leg, where they act as screens for the camera mirror and provide entertainment options for rear-seat passengers. However, some physical controls are included along with the yoke-like steering wheel.
Afeela aims to offer Level 3 automation, allowing the driver to stay away from the road in some situations. That will be enabled by a total of 45 cameras and sensors that feed into Qualcomm’s Snapdragon chip, delivering up to 800 TOPS (tera operations per second) computing power.
Afeela is also working with Epic Games on in-car content, potentially including cloud-based features and augmented reality elements like navigation, as part of an ecosystem of add-ons additional software, some of which may be offered through a subscription. That follows Sony’s plans to be able to turn the car into a moneymaker for content and entertainment.
Afeela electric sedan prototype
However, no powertrain or range information is presented. We know that the car produced will be built by the Americans. Honda, perhaps in preparation, last year announced the implementation plan Its Ohio factory an electric vehicle manufacturing center.
The Project Sony-Honda has grown rapidly since last March, when it was announced that the two companies would join forces to create a new brand and production model. An SUV crossover is also likely planned, as Sony has shown Concept SUV Vision-S 02 at CES in 2022.
