Hyundai Motor Group has launched two industry-academia collaboration programmes in India, the Hyundai Centre of Excellence (Hyundai CoE) Mobility Innovation Ideathon and the Research Synergy Forum, as part of efforts to strengthen the country’s future mobility ecosystem.
Focus on future mobility
Established in 2025, Hyundai CoE is Hyundai Motor Group’s collaborative research platform with seven leading Indian academic institutions: IIT Delhi, IIT Bombay, IIT Madras, IIT Kanpur, IIT Hyderabad, VNIT Nagpur and Tezpur University.
The platform aims to strengthen India-localised mobility R&D capabilities through research collaborations and academic partnerships.
The Mobility Innovation Ideathon will run from September to early December 2026, inviting students from the seven member universities to develop ideas around the theme “Enhanced In-Vehicle Experience”.
The competition will focus on four areas, India-Smart Interaction, AI-Powered & Digital In-Vehicle Experience, Next-Generation In-Vehicle Interface and Smart Value Innovation.
Students to compete for ₹10 lakh
The initiative will encourage students to develop concepts addressing the specific needs of Indian customers and mobility environments, particularly as artificial intelligence, software-defined vehicles, digital technologies and personalised mobility services become increasingly integrated into automobiles.
IIT Delhi Professor, Electrical Engineering Department and Hyundai CoE Co-Chair, Bijaya Ketan Panigrahi, said the ideathon would provide an opportunity to discover creative ideas from students and gain insights into the Indian mobility market and customers.
Hyundai Motor India Engineering Managing Director Chang Yeon Cho said student-driven ideas could contribute to future mobility research and enhanced customer experience.
Each member university will conduct a preliminary screening of submissions. Preliminary winners are scheduled to be announced on October 30, 2026.
The selected teams will then participate in an offline semi-final evaluation by Hyundai Motor Group judges. Seven finalist teams will present their ideas in the final round on December 16, 2026. The Group plans to award approximately ₹10 lakh in prize money across the seven finalist teams.
Research collaboration
Alongside the student competition, Hyundai CoE will conduct the Research Synergy Forum, a faculty-focused programme aimed at strengthening collaboration between Hyundai researchers and professors from member universities.
The forum will facilitate discussions on research outcomes and future collaboration in areas including batteries, electrification and future mobility. It will also explore opportunities for collaboration with Hyundai Motor Group’s R&D divisions.
Through the two programmes, Hyundai CoE is expanding its industry-academia engagement beyond individual research projects to include talent discovery, idea generation, research networking and future mobility innovation.