Hyundai to Supply 20 More Ioniq 5 Robotaxis in U.S., Expanding Physical AI Push

Ioniq 5 robotaxi (file photo) [Photo=Ajunews DB]

Hyundai Motor Group is expanding robotaxi supply in the United States, accelerating its autonomous-driving business built around what it calls “physical AI.” The automaker is supplying vehicles not only to its self-driving unit Motional, which is preparing to commercialize robotaxis this year, but also to Google-owned Waymo as it seeks a bigger role in the U.S. autonomous-driving ecosystem.

After drawing attention at CES 2026 in Las Vegas last month with the humanoid robot “Atlas,” Hyundai is now seeing its push into autonomous-driving commercialization take clearer shape, with robotics and self-driving technology at the center of its physical AI strategy.

According to industry sources on Feb. 19, Hyundai sold 20 Ioniq 5 robotaxis in the United States in January alone, exceeding its total U.S. robotaxi sales for all of last year, which stood at 16 vehicles.

The vehicles are believed to have been supplied to robotaxi operators such as Waymo and Motional. Waymo, widely viewed as a leading player in autonomous driving, is running commercial services in five major U.S. cities and plans to offer services in more than 20 cities, including in Texas and Florida, by the end of this year.

Hyundai said in October 2024 that it had signed a strategic partnership with Waymo to integrate Waymo’s sixth-generation fully autonomous technology, the Waymo Driver, into the Hyundai Ioniq 5.

At the time, Hyundai President Jose Munoz said, “Hyundai and Waymo share a vision of making the way people move safer, more efficient and more convenient,” adding that “Waymo’s innovative technology is improving road safety in the regions where it operates, and the Ioniq 5 is an ideal vehicle to help expand that vision.”

Ioniq 5 vehicles for Waymo are assembled at Hyundai Motor Group Metaplant America, the company’s EV production facility in Georgia. Initial road tests of the Ioniq 5 equipped with Waymo technology are reported to have begun late last year.

Hyundai’s autonomous-driving joint venture Motional has also announced plans to commercialize a Level 4 driverless service in Las Vegas within this year, suggesting Ioniq 5 robotaxi supply will continue to rise.

Hyundai aims to use Ioniq 5 supply to Waymo and Motional to secure positions in the U.S. autonomous-driving market as both a robotaxi hardware platform supplier and a software player.

Kim Dong-young, a senior researcher at the Korea Development Institute, said Hyundai is working to raise its software competitiveness to match its hardware strength. “Collaboration with AI companies is likely to go beyond simply supplying hardware and could be linked to software development as well,” he said.

Hyundai Motor Group is also investing in humanoid robots, another pillar of its physical AI strategy. Hyundai plans to invest 50.5 trillion won in AI robotics by 2030 and is building a robot-dedicated factory in the United States with annual capacity of 30,000 units.

* This article has been translated by AI.

Lee Seongjin