Kia And Samsung Enter Partnership For Kia’s PBV Offerings

Kia and Samsung Partner to Integrate SmartThings Pro into Kia PBVs

SEOUL and TARRAGONA — Kia Corporation has entered into a strategic partnership with Samsung Electronics Co., Ltd. to introduce ‘Internet of Things’ (IoT) solutions for its Platform Beyond Vehicles (PBVs) offerings.

The two companies signed a Memorandum of Understanding during Kia’s 2025 EV Day in Spain, marking a step toward changing both the ‘In-Vehicle’ and ‘Out-of-Vehicle’ experience for PBV customers.

The signing ceremony was attended by Sangdae Kim, Head of Kia’s PBV Division, and Chanwoo Park, Executive Vice President of B2B Integrated Offering Center at Samsung Electronics.

The collaboration aligns with Kia’s wider Platform Beyond Vehicle strategy, which seeks to expand the role of PBVs beyond transportation into customized business solutions that can be integrated into broader digital ecosystems.

“Kia PBVs are designed to be more than just vehicles, they are intelligent business solutions that connect seamlessly with digital ecosystems,” said Sangdae Kim, Head of Kia’s PBV Division. “We anticipate that our business collaboration with Samsung, leveraging its AI B2B solution SmartThings Pro, will extend the vehicle user experience for our business customers beyond PBVs into the broader IoT ecosystem. This partnership is expected to create new opportunities for discovering customer value.”

Kia will integrate Samsung’s IoT platform, ‘SmartThings Pro’, into its PBVs, enabling wireless control of connected devices and technologies through a ‘Plug & Play’ service. This solution reportedly allows business customers to integrate and manage IoT-enabled appliances without complex installations, simply by attaching a smart connector.

“By integrating SmartThings Pro into Kia PBV, we plan to present an intelligent new way for businesses to be connected to their customers,” said Chanwoo Park, Executive Vice President of B2B Integrated Offering Center at Samsung Electronics. “We will provide an optimized integrated store management experience based on customized solutions to cater for a range of B2B customers including the self-employed and small business owners.”

The two companies will first launch pilot services for small business owners and self-employed customers as part of this partnership. Moving forward, they say that they will work on developing IoT product lines specifically for PBVs and bundled solutions tailored to the needs of B2B clients. They also reportedly aim to create new business models and extend their services to B2B customers globally.