Skip advert
Advertisement

‘Samsung is about as profitable as Ford, Renault, Hyundai and the VW Group combined’

Mike Rutherford reflects on the rise and rise of Samsung and thinks the Korean company has a big part to play in the automotive industry

Samsung - Mike Rutherford

I wish I’d kept every issue of Auto Express since day one. Had I done so, I’d have a copy of the ‘Samsung is coming’ headline and story I wrote shortly after we launched in 1988. In the three decades since, Samsung has become South Korea’s largest and most profitable company. 

Advertisement - Article continues below

Very deliberately it’s merely dabbled in the car game so far – mainly, but not entirely, via its downplayed fringe business, Renault Samsung Motors. But I’ve always suspected that when (not if!) the giant launches itself fully on the global automotive stage, it’s far too large, wealthy, clever and proud to do so in conjunction with a traditional car maker

If profits are anything to go by – and they are because they fund the highest levels of R&D, salaries, finest acquisitions plus the right factories in the right countries – then Samsung leaves most old-school car makers looking like cottage industries scratching to earn a living. A 17 per cent year-on-year hike in annual profits to almost $20billion puts it among the world’s top 10 firms. 

On its own, Samsung was about as profitable last year as Ford, Renault, Hyundai and the VW Group combined. It’s rich enough to become more of a major EV player and now has the will, plus the technical capabilities, to go deep down the auto road. If it can do state-of-the-art aircraft, military vehicles and globally significant consumer products, it can certainly do driverless or driveable electric cars and trucks. Samsung vehicles or vehicle tech are set to become as much a part of our lives as its other devices, such as smartphones. 

The company recently paid $8billion to acquire Harman, which will greatly assist in its assault on the global EV market. The two firms last week established the Samsung Automotive Innovation Fund before adding that they’ll play a “leadership” role in supporting and shaping connected vehicles.

When its EVs (some Samsung-branded, some not) arrive, all these consumer goods will be talking to and working with each other. At the very least, your Samsung phone will replace your sat-nav device. And don’t rule out your EV automatically switching on your Samsung entertainment system and central heating when it detects you’re heading home on a winter’s night. Not that you’ll necessarily need to, because your ‘Samcar’ could double as a tiny detached house on wheels.

Which tech giant do you think will have the biggest role in the automotove industry in the years to come? Let us know in the comments below.

Skip advert
Advertisement
Chief columnist

Mike was one of the founding fathers of Auto Express in 1988. He's been motoring editor on four tabloid newspapers - London Evening News, The Sun, News of the World & Daily Mirror. He was also a weekly columnist on the Daily Telegraph, The Independent and The Sunday Times. 

Find a car with the experts

Skip advert
Advertisement

Most Popular

Future of Nissan in the UK: new Gigafactory to power bold EV plans
Future of Nissan in the UK - header with Phil McNamara

Future of Nissan in the UK: new Gigafactory to power bold EV plans

Nissan is about to go from building the Qashqai hybrid to three fresh EVs in the UK over the next three years – all powered by a new gigafactory
Features
19 Apr 2025
Best SUVs to buy 2025
Best SUVs - header image

Best SUVs to buy 2025

There are plenty of great SUVs to choose from, so we’ve picked out the very best
Best cars & vans
17 Apr 2025
New baby Nissan Juke EV on the way to challenge the Dacia Spring
Baby Nissan Juke exclusive image - rear

New baby Nissan Juke EV on the way to challenge the Dacia Spring

Nissan to fast-track development of new battery-powered city car to take on forthcoming Volkswagen ID.1, and our exclusive images preview how it could…
News
18 Apr 2025