Sony-Honda Afeela EV features in music video starring virtual K-Pop star

The first prototype of the Sony-Honda Afeela EV was showcased at the Consumer Electronics Show (CES) 2023 in Las Vegas earlier this year. The electric prototype, despite not actually having any vehicles in production, has made its music video debut with virtual K-Pop star, Apoki. Called ‘Mood V5’, the music video is Apoki's first single of the year and shows the celebrity driving the Afeela.

Apoki, which was created by AFUN Interactive, a Korean tech startup, is a rabbit-like looking being that lives somewhere in space. The company said that when it saw Afeela's first concept at the CES, it felt that the car's “message of pursuing mobility innovation" resonated with it and its creation, Apoki.

Thus, AFUN reached out to Sony Honda Mobility to collaborate, and the joint venture reciprocated in acknowledgement of Apoki’s innovative and artistic creativity among other virtual artists, and thus agreed for the partnership.

In the music video, Apoki can be seen driving the Afeela through the roads made in the space to reach a new world. A glimpse of the interior of the EV prototype shows a yoke-shaped steering wheel and head-up display being used by the K-Pop star.

The Sony-Honda Afeela is expected to become a reality someday with the company having announced at the CES that it will start accepting pre-bookings from the first half of 2025, and the first deliveries will be made in 2026 in the North American market. While Honda will be handling the engineering of the car, Sony will be behind its technology.

The upper part of the sedan wears black paint, while the lower part sports a silver theme. Afeela is likely to be filled with technology to the very brim including cloud-based software, Level 3 autonomy, and plenty of entertainment options. Its display stretches across the entirety of the dash and the automaker could reportedly even integrate the PlayStation 5 into the vehicle.