New Delhi: Hyundai Motor Group on Wednesday announced the launch of the Hyundai Center of Excellence (Hyundai CoE) for future mobility technologies at the Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Delhi, marking a significant step towards advancing electric mobility and battery system innovation in India.

The initiative aims to build a robust joint research ecosystem, focusing on key areas of electrification. Hyundai has partnered with IITs on nine research projects under its long-term academic-industrial cooperation strategy.

These projects span critical fields such as battery cell development, system and performance testing, battery management systems, energy density improvements, and diagnostics and safety technologies to boost durability and reliability.

The Steering Committee of Hyundai CoE will be jointly led by Hyundai Motor Group’s Executive Vice President Chang Hwan Kim and IIT Delhi Professor Bijaya Ketan Panigrahi.

"We are excited to work with India's brightest minds in battery innovation," said Heuiwon Yang, President and Head of the R&D Division at Hyundai Motor Group.

"Collaborating with leading researchers and IIT professors through the Hyundai Center of Excellence for future mobility technology will help us develop technologies tailored to India while contributing to its economy and society. We see this partnership with India's academia and industry as a foundation for building a sustainable future together," he added.

Alongside the launch, Hyundai is scaling up its Future Technology Research Program—originally launched in 2021—which allows academic researchers to propose their own ideas for evaluation.

Unlike traditional industry-academia collaborations, this model empowers faculty to shape the research agenda, subject to review and approval by Hyundai.

The program, initially limited to domestic universities and Korean scholars abroad, has now expanded to include international faculty members, starting with professors at IITs.

With IIT Delhi as the starting point, the Hyundai CoE will roll out in phases across India, connecting a network of top researchers and academic institutions nationwide.

Currently, Hyundai is engaged with IIT Delhi, IIT Bombay, and IIT Madras, collaborating with approximately 30 professors. The company plans to extend this network to 10 Indian universities—including non-IITs—by the end of 2025, targeting participation from around 100 professors.