Hyundai Motor Group pitches "physical AI" vision to attract Silicon Valley talent

Hyundai Motor Group is repositioning itself as a physical AI enterprise, developing robotics, self-driving cars and the software that links them, and is actively courting global tech talent. The message was delivered by President and CEO Jose Munoz at the HMG Tech Forum 2026, held at the San Jose McEnery Convention Center on Sept. 17-18, which attracted roughly 380 participants from the engineering and AI sectors. The forum’s theme “Go Beyond Together” allowed attendees to experience the group’s work in AI, robotics, autonomous driving, smart manufacturing, software and hydrogen, and to explore career opportunities.

Nine subsidiaries, including Hyundai Motor, Kia, Boston Dynamics, Motional and 42dot, took part, with senior leaders Manfred Harrer, Park Min-woo and Kim Hye-in speaking on combining decades of physical engineering with rapid virtual development. One-on-one coffee chats and on-site interviews were offered to candidates from the HMG Global Tech Talent recruitment program launched in April.