Hyundai Earth and Venus cars concept cars hint at the future of its Ioniq EVs
We could soon see what the next-generation of Hyundai’s Ioniq EV model line will look like
A “cosmic statement, engineered for humans” is how Hyundai is describing its two new concept cars, the ‘Earth’ and the ‘Venus’.
Details on the two cars are thin on the ground, but Hyundai says they are “marking another beginning of Ioniq’s grand narrative”. With Ioniq being Hyundai’s EV brand, the hint is that all-electric powertrains are used. The design seems much more minimalistic than Hyundai’s current line up of Ioniq-badged EVs, but potentially even more eye-catching.
Just one image of each car has been shown so far and Hyundai hasn’t yet enlightened us as to which concept is called Earth and which is Venus. The likes of the Ioniq 5 and Ioniq 6 are already pretty bold in their respective designs, but the Earth and Venus seem to turn things up several notches.
The image of the front-end of one of the concepts shows an incredibly angular, cab-forward shape with sharp surfacing and blocky wheel arches. There’s also a distinctive headlight signature made up of three thin LED strips - that’s significant because it suggests Hyundai is looking to move away from the ‘pixel’ light signature used on the Ioniq 5, Ioniq 6, Ioniq 9 and, we suspect, the upcoming Ioniq 3.
The rear-facing image of the golden car suggests an equally striking design with ultra-thin rear LED lights to accentuate width, razor-sharp body panels and what looks to be a hatchback or ‘fastback’ profile with the rear glass stretching back to a small rear lip spoiler.
Hyundai also posted a preview video of the Earth and Venus concepts. While the video lacked any imagery or information on the cars, it did have the Ioniq brand name flash up towards the end with Chinese subtitles, hinting that both concepts could make their full unveiling at the Auto China 2026 show in Beijing later this month.
As for the technology the two new Ioniq concepts could potentially feature, we know Hyundai is working on new NMC (nickel, magnesium and cobalt) chemistry batteries, looking to reduce cost while maintaining competitive performance in range and charging. Another option could be to give us an update on solid-state battery technology, which Hyundai sees as its “next-gen powerhouse for electric vehicles”.
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