Harman International (Harman), a subsidiary of Samsung Electronics, has made an investment in Hungary to target the European market.
According to the Hungarian Investment Promotion Agency (HIPA) on the 27th, Harman will invest a total of 131.18 million euros (about 230 billion won) to push forward a project to strengthen research and development (R&D) and production capabilities in Hungary.
At the Budapest R&D center, it will develop software and hardware that support Autonomous Driving functions, and in Székesfehérvár, experimental development of Autonomous Driving systems and vehicle information management solutions is expected to proceed.
At the production bases in Székesfehérvár and Pécs, it will introduce digitalization and automation technologies to increase production capacity, while also installing solar power facilities.
In particular, some projects are said to be related to developing in-vehicle electronics solutions aimed at Mercedes-Benz vehicles. With cooperation expanding between Samsung Electronics and global automakers, this investment is seen as part of that trend.
Harman is in the business of in-vehicle audio and infotainment systems and was acquired by Samsung Electronics in 2017, becoming a core pillar of its in-vehicle electronics business.
Lee Jae-yong, chairman of Samsung Electronics, has recently continued talks on cooperation with executives of global automakers, focusing on expanding the in-vehicle electronics business.