Saturday, October 14, 2023

"Kia’s Future EVs Are All About Chatbots, Mushrooms, and Affordability"

Mushrooms, is there anything they can't do?

From Inverse, October 12:

Center consoles made of mushrooms and hemp? Apparently, that’s Kia’s plan.

Kia’s two latest conceptual EVs may look cutting-edge from the outside, but it’s the innovative interiors that are a real preview of the future.

For its annual Kia EV Day, the Korean automaker revealed the Concept EV3 and Concept EV4. The two EVs are just concepts for the time being, but Kia has incorporated some unique sustainable materials like mushroom fibers and hemp into its interiors. Eventually, the production model versions will take advantage of generative AI assistants, too. 

Even though Kia will likely tone down the Concept EV3 and Concept EV4 into more realistic commercial models, these ambitious EV designs have caught our attention. We’re all familiar with sustainable materials like vegan leather, but interior elements made from mushroom fibers sound straight out of sci-fi.

Kia also debuted its much tamer EV5 which gives us a better idea of what to expect from a vehicle you’ll actually be able to drive. For this upcoming range of EVs, Kia says it wants to keep the EV3, EV4, and EV5 between $35,000 and $50,000. 

MADE OF MUSHROOMS....

....MUCH MORE

Previously on the magic of mushrooms:
Mushrooms, Is There Anything They Can't Do?
Thanks, I think, to a "friend."
From the Journal of Neurochemistry, January 20:
Hericerin derivatives activates a pan-neurotrophic pathway in central hippocampal neurons converging to ERK1/2 signaling enhancing spatial memory...
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