Japan's Sony, Honda to pursue new opportunities after scrapping Afeela 1 EV, Nikkei reports

April 17 : Sony Group and Honda Motor have decided to pursue other opportunities through the Japanese firms' 50-50 joint venture after canceling the Afeela 1 electric vehicle in March, the Nikkei newspaper reported on Friday.

Sony Honda Mobility, the joint venture between Japanese electronics giant and the carmaker, said in March it will stop developing the Afeela cars, citing Honda's EV strategy overhaul.

The joint venture's pivot also means determining what to do with its roughly 400 employees as early as April, the report said. The parent firms are considering absorbing a portion of these workers.

Sony and Honda are discussing non-EV products and services as alternatives. They expect to find other applications for Afeela 1 technologies such as an artificial intelligence assistant and an audio system, the report said.