Sony Honda Mobility has officially killed off the Afeela electric sedan, but it isn’t the end of the partnership between electronics maker Sony and car maker Honda. Development on the joint-venture vehicle has been stopped, but a new report says the two companies are looking for ways to make something happen outside of electric cars.
Sony, Honda Won’t Stop Trying To Make Synergy Happen
2026 SHM Afeela Front High AngleSony Honda Mobility
When Sony and Honda announced the launch of SHM, it felt like a strange decision on the part of both brands. Sony had no experience with electric cars at all, while Honda still had very little. But in 2022, the electric vehicle market looked to have a lot more headroom than it does today, and there was room to innovate.
According to a new report from Nikkei Asia, Sony, Honda, and Sony-Hona Mobility are all looking for new projects that could salvage some of the investment. The report says the two are discussing applications for the Afeela 1’s tech, including its artificial intelligence assistant and the Sony-developed audio system.
The electric sedan was set to hit the market this year with 40 sensors all monitoring the car’s surroundings as part of self-driving tech and a suite of advanced driver assists. With the car just months away from production when it was canceled, development on the suite had to have been all but complete. It doesn’t make sense to throw it away if you can sell it to someone or even use it in Honda’s vehicles.
An SHM car is still possible, at least according to the report. For that to happen, the EV situation in the US would have to change significantly, and by then, the Afeela would probably already be very obsolete. Development would have to restart, which probably means an all-new car.
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Nikkei says that the joint-venture is still a way for Sony to break into mobility instead of just consumer electronics. Wisely, Sony was already using its PlayStation gaming system and Gran Turismo 7 to promote the Afeela 1.
SHM Employees Could Find Roles With Parent Companies
2026 SHM Afeela 1 Front Customizable DisplaySony-Honda
SHM reportedly still has 400 employees, many of whom are in marketing and other non-development roles. SHM will need to decide what to do with the extra staff, and the report suggests some could find roles with Sony or Honda.
It’s been six years since Sony first announced it wanted to dip its toes into the auto industry. It revealed the Vision-S at CES in 2020, as a concept for a platform for a new model. It had help from suppliers Magna, Continental, and more, and was led by Sony’s AI and Robotics team. This was the same group that made its AIBO robot dog.
A year later at CES, Sony gave us an update on the model, which was once again made to show off Sony’s AI development. At CES 2022, a second concept was revealed, and Sony announced Sony Mobility as a spin-off to develop it. Sony Honda Mobility was announced two months later.
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The program seemed very far into the process when it was canceled. SHM had opened one showroom in LA and was about to open a second when news came down that Honda was stopping most of its EV activity. Honda was going to build the EV at its plant in Ohio, andpre-production assemblytesting had started in late 2025.
Source: Nikkei Asia
