Sony Honda Mobility Premieres AFEELA Prototype 2026 at CES
Ahead of the opening of CES 2026 in Las Vegas, Sony Honda Mobility (SHM) held a press conference on January 5, 2026, to present its evolving vision for the future of mobility and to introduce the next phase of AFEELA.
Under the theme Mobility as a Creative Entertainment Space, SHM presented AFEELA 1 as a pre production model. AFEELA 1 is the company’s first production electric vehicle and is scheduled to begin customer deliveries in the United States later this year. SHM also reaffirmed its long term technology vision, highlighting how partnerships across technology, entertainment, and content creation are shaping its roadmap.
During the conference, SHM also world debuted a new electric prototype, the AFEELA Prototype 2026. AFEELA Prototype 2026 builds on the core concept of AFEELA 1 while offering increased spatial flexibility and accessibility. SHM plans to develop a production model based on this prototype for launch in the US market as early as 2028.
Sony Honda Mobility’s Vision
SHM envisions mobility evolving into a Creative Entertainment Space powered by vehicle AI. Vehicles are designed to move beyond traditional driver centric machines and become intelligent partners that understand user preferences and emotions, maximizing the value of space and time during travel.
AFEELA Intelligent Drive is SHM’s advanced driver assistance system, which the company is continuously enhancing while evolving it into an end to end AI model integrating Vision Language Models. The system begins with Level 2 plus driver assistance that supports travel from departure to destination, with the long term goal of achieving Level 4 equivalent capabilities. This evolution is intended to transform the cabin into a drive less environment where occupants can enjoy entertainment.
The AFEELA Personal Agent is an interactive conversational AI powered by Microsoft Azure OpenAI Service. It is designed to deliver highly personalized and natural dialogue experiences tailored to individual users, strengthening the relationship between people and mobility.
To support these capabilities, SHM plans to utilize solutions from Qualcomm Technologies’ Snapdragon Digital Chassis within AFEELA’s future electrical and electronic architecture. By continuously adopting advanced platforms, SHM aims to deliver AI centered next generation mobility experiences.
Through the AFEELA Co Creation Program, SHM collaborates with creators and developers by providing access to information needed to develop in vehicle entertainment, including themes and applications. The company is also building cloud APIs and a development environment for Android applications on in vehicle infotainment systems, enabling entirely new mobility applications that enhance the in cabin experience.
SHM is also pursuing the development of an on chain mobility service platform that uses a token based incentive model powered by crypto technologies. Under the X to Earn concept, the platform is intended to support an ecosystem spanning ideation, development, experience, and evaluation, and will be open to other automakers and service providers.
AFEELA 1, From Vision to Reality
Reservations for AFEELA 1 began in January 2025 in California. Since then, SHM has opened AFEELA Studio showrooms and hosted vehicle exhibition events across multiple locations, welcoming more than 100,000 visitors and conducting over 24,000 in vehicle demonstrations within the first year.
In fall 2025, SHM completed trial production runs of AFEELA 1 at its contract manufacturing partner, Honda’s East Liberty Auto Plant in Ohio, as part of preparations for mass production. Pre production vehicles produced during these runs are being exhibited at CES 2026.
This spring, SHM plans to open AFEELA Studio and Delivery Hubs in Torrance and Fremont, California. These locations will combine showroom and delivery functions to provide a complete brand experience. A phased experiential program, AFEELA Advanced Access, will be offered to early reservation holders, with demo drives planned for later this year.
Sales of AFEELA 1 are expected to expand to Arizona in 2027, with deliveries in Japan scheduled to begin in the first half of 2027.
