Denso, an automotive component manufacturer with a North American headquarters in Southfield, today announced a plan to open a joint innovation center in Finland with software company Symbio.
The facility will be based in Symbio’s premises in Espoo and activities will begin this year following a letter of intent to establish the innovation center signed on Oct. 24.
“We are now exploring beyond the vehicle shell to create new value for the future new mobility society and users, and we are very excited about the potential opportunities provided by our joint innovation center with Symbio,” says Kazuoki Matsugatani, executive director of Denso. “Our goal is to develop solutions that strive to enrich the user experience for connected mobility that is sustainable, comfortable, and convenient for everyone.”
The joint innovation center will combine Denso’s automotive technology with Symbio’s specialization in consumer products. By utilizing design thinking methodology, Denso and Symbio will build new concepts and solutions for Denso’s clients and employees, and both companies will collaborate on new solutions. Symbio will also specifically hire concept designers and software architects who will utilize rapid prototyping to create profitable solutions for the automotive mobility industry.
“It is great that Symbio reaches this strategic position with a major automotive component manufacturer and allows us to be a significant part of developing the automotive ecosystem,” adds Kuusinen. “The joint innovation center is in the heart of developing new revenue streams.”
