Skip to main content

Korean electronics giant Samsung seeks stake in Chinese carmaker BYD

samsung byd carmaker china stake name feat
Image used with permission by copyright holder
Tech companies are steadily strengthening their foothold in the automotive realm. China’s LeEco is backing startup Faraday Future, Google is working with Fiat Chrysler Automobiles (FCA) to commercialize its autonomous-driving technology, and there are no shortage of rumors about an Apple electric car. Now, another marriage between a tech company and a carmaker may be in the works.

Samsung is looking to acquire a stake in Chinese carmaker BYD, according to Reuters. The Korean electronics giant is reportedly aiming to create a new market for its chip business as the smartphone market slows. Samsung will pay 3 billion yuan ($450 million), giving the Korean firm a 1.92 percent stake in BYD and making it the carmaker’s ninth largest investor.

Updated on 7-22-2016 By Stephen Edelstein: Added the amount to be paid by Samsung, and the size of the stake purchased.

BYD (the name stands for “Build Your Dreams”) is one of China’s highest-profile carmakers. It’s backed by Warren Buffett’s Berkshire Hathaway, and is a major producer of electric cars and plug-in hybrids. Last year, it sold more of those two types of vehicle than any other company. BYD has made sporadic attempts to enter the U.S. market, including limited sales of electric buses.

Samsung also isn’t entirely new to the automotive field. It started its own car division in the 1990s, and then sold it to Renault. Now known as Renault-Samsung Motors, it sells rebadged Renault and Nissan models. Samsung’s SDI battery division also supplies batteries to multiple carmakers, and will supply them to Audi for the German brand’s upcoming all-electric SUV. However, Samsung said battery supply will not be part of the BYD deal.

There is a lot of potential room for companies like Samsung to get involved in the car business. The increased importance of infotainment systems and the hardware needed to enable autonomous driving has made electronics in automobile more important than ever. Samsung could be interested only in supplying components, rather than using BYD as a stepping stone to building its own cars.

BYD appears to have shelved its plans for selling cars in the U.S., but Chinese-made cars are coming to our shores. General Motors has already committed to importing the Buick Envision and Cadillac CT6 Plug-In Hybrid from China, while Chinese carmaker GAC plans to attend the 2016 Detroit Auto Show to feel out the U.S. market.

Editors' Recommendations

Stephen Edelstein
Stephen is a freelance automotive journalist covering all things cars. He likes anything with four wheels, from classic cars…
Mercedes to trial humanoid robots for ‘low-skill, repetitive, demanding’ jobs
Apptronik's Apollo robot at work in an auto plant.

Humanoid robots have been coming on leaps and bounds in recent years, and some major companies are starting to take note.

Mercedes-Benz, for example, has just entered into an agreement with Texas-based robotics specialist Apptronik to collaborate on identifying applications for highly advanced robots that the auto giant could deploy. The deal will involve a trial that will see Apptronik's Apollo humanoid robot work alongside Mercedes' human workers on the factory floor.

Read more
Hyundai Ioniq 9: price, release date, range, and more
Hyundai Ioniq 9 Front

Hyundai has been at the forefront of EV development for a while now, largely thanks to the success of the crossover-sized Hyundai Ioniq 5. But the company is readying another new EV that could be even more popular than the Ioniq 5 -- or at least more desirable in the U.S., the land of big cars.

The upcoming Ioniq 9, previously set to be called the Ioniq 7, will be Hyundai's take on an electric SUV. It will be to Hyundai what the Kia EV9 is to Kia. It will have three rows and carry over design elements from the Ioniq 5.

Read more
Audi Q6 e-tron ushers in the automaker’s next EV phase
2025 Audi Q6 e-tron front three quarter view.

Audi doesn’t get enough credit for getting luxury car buyers comfortable with EVs. While Tesla took care of the image-conscious types, the German brand unveiled its e-tron electric SUV in 2018 with the tagline “electric has gone Audi” in hopes of getting loyal customers excited about (or, at least, acclimated to) electric cars by pitching the e-tron as an Audi first and an EV second.

The e-tron wasn’t a one-off, either. It’s since evolved into the Q8 e-tron and has been joined by the sporty e-tron GT and entry-level Q4 e-tron. So, while some car brands are only just introducing their first electric models, Audi is ready for round two.

Read more