Hyundai Smart City: Green city concept banishes streets below

At the "World Cities Summit 2022" in Singapore, the Hyundai Motor Group presented a vision for modern cities. The Smart City Model is characterized by sustainable and intelligent mobility solutions. Hyundai intended to present it as a guideline for the development of intelligent mobility solutions worldwide. Youngcho Chi, President and Chief Innovation Officer of the Hyundai Motor Group, described the model in a panel discussion at the World Cities Summit as a vision of a human-centered city:

"Our goal is for people in future Smart Cities to live with nature while utilizing modern technologies. Our mobility solutions in the air and on the ground will redefine the boundaries of the cities, connect people in meaningful ways, and revitalize the cities. We will continue to collaborate with governments around the world to bring our vision of a smart city to life while rapidly advancing the capabilities of future mobility solutions."

The Smart City concept – inspired by a honeycomb pattern – is a hexagonal city with a human-centered above-ground layer and a function-focused underground layer. On the above-ground level, buildings frame nature in the form of parks and forests located in the center of the city. The gross built area in the city center is minimized.

Buildings with a View of Nature, Roads Underground

The buildings are divided into three sections based on population density – high, medium, and low. Near the parks and forests in the city center, there is only a low density of buildings, allowing people an unobstructed view of nature from every part of the city. Additionally, the buildings within each section are arranged according to their function. For example, the city's landmarks are located in the high-density zone, while the security infrastructure is situated in the medium-density zone. The areas are arranged to be easily accessible from any point.

The entire road infrastructure of the city is underground, similar to the project initiated near Dubai called Masdar City. All goods and services are transported underground and autonomously to the automated logistics centers of each region, where robots complete the final delivery.

Autonomous Mobility Instead of Individual Traffic Jams

Residents will travel between cities using Advanced Air Mobility (AAM). The AAM vehicles will land and take off on so-called Hub 2.0 towers. Thus, the AAM connections are located above the residential and office areas, directly on top of the buildings.

The Smart City concept also envisions a sustainable green city, preserving large nature areas. In the city center, there will be recreational forests, parks, and a reservoir for the city's water supply. To maintain the CO₂ level neutral, the primary energy source of the city will be hydrogen, transported via the smart grid to the hydrogen fuel cell generators of each building.

Further Development Since CES 2020

At CES in 2020, the Hyundai Motor Group presented its vision for the cities of the future and the support of intelligent mobility solutions. Since then, the group has continued to advance the development of intelligent mobility solutions. The group introduced electric vehicles such as the Hyundai Ioniq 5 and the Kia EV6 and announced plans to produce purpose-built vehicles (PBVs) and robotaxis in the future.

Motional, a joint venture of the Hyundai Motor Group responsible for autonomous driving technologies, is currently developing robotaxis. They are expected to hit the market in 2023. The group's AAM subsidiary, Supernal, recently unveiled an eVTOL Vehicle Cabin Concept. These are electrically powered small aircraft that take off and land vertically and can be used as air taxis. According to Hyundai, they are expected to come to market in 2028. ha/jr