Amazon to sell cars online, starting with Hyundai

Amazon, the online retail powerhouse that began its journey by selling books, has announced a groundbreaking expansion into the automotive sales sector, in collaboration with Hyundai. Starting in the second half of 2024, U.S. customers will have the ability to purchase Hyundai vehicles directly through Amazon.com, with the service expanding to include other car brands later that year.

This innovative move builds upon a prior agreement to enhance Hyundai’s digital showroom on the Amazon platform, which has been in place since 2018. The enhanced shopping experience will be seamlessly integrated with local dealerships to facilitate the delivery of the vehicles, providing a new level of convenience in car buying. Customers will be able to select from a variety of vehicle preferences such as model, trim, and color, and finalize their purchase with online payment and financing options.

Moreover, starting in 2025, new Hyundai cars will come with integrated access to Amazon’s Alexa voice assistant, further merging the tech and automotive industries. Hyundai’s CEO, Jay Chang, expressed enthusiasm for the partnership with Amazon, citing the expansion of their sales network and the move towards electrification and smart mobility as key benefits.

The announcement, made at the 2023 Los Angeles Auto Show, was met with support from industry leaders, including Mike Sullivan, a prominent figure in the LA dealership community. Sullivan highlighted Amazon’s influence in delivering customer convenience and its potential to elevate customer experience in the car dealership sector.

Amazon’s foray into vehicle sales marks a significant step for the e-commerce platform, which already operates an “Amazon Vehicle Showroom” where manufacturers can advertise their cars. However, this initiative will be the first time customers can complete the full vehicle purchase process via Amazon, marking a significant shift in the online retail space and the way consumers buy cars.

Another announcement made as part of the strategic partnership between the two companies, Hyundai has chosen Amazon Web Services (AWS) as its primary cloud provider to expedite its digital overhaul, utilizing AWS’s comprehensive and leading-edge capabilities in computing, storage, database, analytics, artificial intelligence (including generative AI), and the Internet of Things (IoT).