Japan's Sharp follows Sony in TV-to-EV shift with help of iPhone maker Foxconn

TOKYO — Following the electric vehicle gambit of compatriot Sony, another Japanese electronics giant better known for televisions wants to move from the family room into the garage.

Or more precisely, in the case of Sharp, the latest entrant: move the family room into the car.

Sharp Corp.'s automotive ambition is encapsulated in the LDK+ people mover. The company's first concept car debuted at a technology exhibit here Sept. 17-18. The name is derived from the Japanese term for a large apartment with a separate living, dining and kitchen area, or LDK.

The LDK+ has a cavernous rear with a couch and coffee table that explores new interior layouts.

Leveraging Sharp's video screen expertise, the company installed a massive 64-inch LED display across the back, pitching the cabin as "an immersive theater room or a children's play area."

The slab-sided box-mobile is packed with high-tech doodads, including artificial intelligence apps, liquid crystal shutters on the side windows and solar panels to recharge the batteries.

Sharp's concept rides on the EV open platform developed by parent company Hon Hai Technology Group, the Taiwanese contract manufacturer better known as Foxconn that is the world's biggest maker of Apple iPhones. Foxconn bought control of Sharp in 2016. Sharp traces its roots to 1912 but fell on hard times amid cheaper competition for displays from China.

"We are using the Foxconn group's platform as a base, while we develop the uppers parts with this as our proposal for various technologies and functionalities," said Kazuma Naito, manager in charge of software development for the LDK+ at the company's Next Innovation division.

Sharp follows Japanese rival Sony Corp. in shifting from TVs to EVs. As the line between the auto and electronics worlds blurs, tech firms increasingly seek new revenue streams from selling value added software, sensors, entertainment systems and electric-drive components for cars.

Sony and Honda Motor Co. formed a joint venture in 2022 called Sony Honda Mobility. The collaboration between the two Japanese brands is developing a new EV sedan under the Afeela brand that will be produced in North America with deliveries beginning as early as 2026.

Sharp, still one of Japan's top TV brands, aspires to sell its own EVs someday, but not so soon.

Sharp's Next Innovation division is tasked with developing EVs and AI. The loose goal is to start selling its own EVs by the end of the decade, Naito said.

The initial target market will be Japan, and a manufacturing base has yet to be decided. The vehicles would be manufactured by Foxconn and could be made locally or in China or elsewhere.

The LDK+ is based on the all-electric drivetrain of the Foxconn Model C five-seat crossover, which was unveiled in 2021 and is already on sale in Taiwan. The Model C has a 172-kilowatt motor and a range of 313 miles under the New European Driving Cycle standard, which is considered more lenient and optimistic than the U.S. EPA testing method.

Foxconn has signed a slew of automotive agreements in recent years as it builds inroads into the industry. It has taken 50 percent stakes in ZF Group's axle system assembly unit and in the German supplier's chassis modules business. It formed a 50-50 joint venture with Stellantis to design and sell automotive semiconductors starting in 2026. Foxconn also has a deal with the German chipmaker Infineon to co-develop advanced silicon carbide semiconductors for EVs.

Last year, Foxconn hired former Nissan Motor Co. COO Jun Seki as chief strategy officer for EVs. Seki had left Nissan to become CEO of Nidec Corp., a producer of electric motors, before joining the Taiwanese manufacturer.

Foxconn also has a line of proposed EVs, including a Model B hatchback, Model V pickup and Model N van.

Still, Foxconn's parlays into automotive territory have mostly been on the fringes.

It penned a manufacturing deal with Monarch Tractor, an American all-electric, autonomous driving tractor company. And it has a joint venture with Saudi Arabia's Public Investment Fund to design, manufacture and sell the Middle Eastern kingdom's first auto brand, a marque called Ceer.

In the U.S., however, it was a center of controversy in the failed attempt by Lordstown Motors Corp. to build electric pickup trucks at the ill-fated startup's former General Motors plant in Ohio.

Lordstown filed for bankruptcy last year after failing to resolve a dispute with Foxconn over an investment Lordstown says it was promised to jointly develop an EV platform.

Lordstown has since exited from bankruptcy as Nu Ride Inc. and is pursuing a claim against Hon Hai Technology Group and its Foxconn Ventures subsidiary alleging fraud and a failure to adhere to commercial and financial commitments in a partnership between the businesses.

In 2021, Foxconn agreed to take a $50 million stake in Lordstown Motors, which in turn agreed to sell Foxconn its Ohio factory for $230 million. A press release touted the deal's promise by positioning the plant as a factory making vehicles on a contract basis for numerous companies.

"The Foxconn partnership will unlock the tremendous potential of the Lordstown plant by getting it to scale faster," Foxconn said, adding that it would be a "state-of-the-art" EV facility.

"Lordstown Motors and all OEMs whose vehicles are built at the plant will benefit from the increased capacity utilization, possible use of common components and shared overhead costs."