Hyundai Motor Group, which owns Hyundai Motor and Kia Motors, said Monday it has promoted senior vice president Hwang Seung-ho as the carmaker’s new IT chief.

Hwang, a former Samsung Electronics executive, joined Hyundai last year and has led the development of the carmaker’s Bluelink telematics systems and related services.

As the new head of Hyundai’s automotive IT development center, he is expected to oversee key projects, including the commercialization of its self-driving car technology.

His predecessor Kwack Woo-young, former LG Electronics R&D chief, will continue to serve as an adviser. The man behind LG’s hit Chocolate and Prada phones joined Hyundai in 2012.

“The new appointment is part of our strategy to combine and streamline our automotive IT related R&D activities,” said a Hyundai official.

The Korean auto giant has poured considerable resources into elevating its IT prowess as electronic parts are estimated to make up more than half the automotive components by 2020.

Among other things, Hyundai is speeding up efforts to attract talented workers to the IT development team at its Namyang Technology Research Center in Gyeonggi Province. Some hundreds of IT engineers are said to be working at the team, which develops infotainment systems and electronic circuits.

In January, Hyundai announced its new investment plan worth 2 trillion won ($1.8 billion) into the development of next-generation smart vehicles. Under the plan, the carmaker, in cooperation with its parts unit Hyundai Mobis, aims to commercialize its own self-driving cars by 2020.

By Lee Ji-yoon (jylee@heraldcorp.com)