- Hyundai Glovis bets at $ 6.5 billion on autonomous technical transformation of global shipping routes
- Avikus is no longer testing – its self -management system moves into commercial implementation
- AI -Autonomy on the open sea moves beyond research and to practical application
South Korea’s Hyundai Glovis takes a big step into undamaged waters with the launch of the world’s first artificial intelligence -based autonomous navigation systems for car carriers.
Working in partnership with Avikus, the autonomous vessel technology arm of HD Hyundai, Glovis is set to retrofit seven of its large clean car and trucks (PCTCs) with Level-2 Maritime Autonomous Surface Ship (Mass) platforms in mid-2026.
If successful, this can mark a shift in maritime logistics, where fully integrated AI navigation remains largely theoretical.
Technological jump or calculated risk?
The AI-based system in question, developed by Avikus and the brand as HINAS, allows for partial remote control and real-time AI route optimization.
Although this does not yet constitute full autonomy, supporters believe it can lead to fuel savings and better operational efficiency.
“An autonomous ship is especially effective for PCTCs operating on long-distance, point-to-point routes connecting Asia or North America,” noted a Glovis official.
However, the decision to rely on Avikus raises rather than developing proprietary tech questions about long -term flexibility and control over future software updates.
Glovis plans to install the system on vessels including the 229.9 meters long Sunrisewhich can carry up to 7,000 vehicles.
This vessel alone can become the largest ship ever equipped with AI-run autonomy.
“While competitors have added what corresponds to smart navigation, Glovis effectively gives ships the opportunity to make decisions and optimize performance on their own,” said a shipping analyst who is familiar with the project.
Avikus, who got attention after completing the world’s first transatlantic journey by a LNG transporter using his level-2 autonomous system in 2022, is part of this project.
The company has beaten agreements with companies such as Sinokor and H-Line, and is now targeted at Level-3 and Level-4 capacities, which would allow for full unmanned operations in 2027.
Hyundai Glovis, meanwhile, sees this initiative as central to its transformation into a smart logistics solution company, after committing 9 trillion won (about $ 6.5 billion) in investment through 2030.
Although Glovis and Avikus belong to various branches of the Hyundai family – Hyundai Motor Group and HD Hyundai – the partnership reflects a deeper convergence between South Korea’s inheritance industrial giants.
Japanese and European competitors have already tested the AI-Refuge Routing, but Glovis’ approach is the first to involve the broad implementation of integrated decision-making systems on several car companies.
Whether this results in meaningful industry disorder is yet to be seen, but so far the 750 -foot -long, almost 100,000 tonnes of vessels could become symbols of what is going to come, or a caution about overreach.
Via the Korean economic daily
