Hyundai Mobis, South Korea’s biggest auto parts supplier, hired Gregory Baratoff, head of camera sensor development at Continental, as the vice president of the company’s driving assistant system development earlier this month to step up its competitiveness in autonomous driving, the company said Wednesday.

 

The recruitment comes as Hyundai Mobis recently accelerated efforts in securing industry-leading self-driving and eco-friendly vehicle technologies.

“Hyundai Mobis will take the lead as a global top-tier company by improving technology on the know-how of outstanding global talents and company vision,” said Yang Seung-wook, executive vice president of the R&D division at Hyundai Mobis.

Baratoff worked at Continental, a leading German automotive manufacturing company, where he developed algorithms for camera sensors from 2000.

Baratoff is being tasked to heighten the company’s sensor technology by putting together a self-developed camera sensor and a sensor fusion, the company said.

Last May, the company hired Dr. Micro Goetz, an expert in lamp regulation and law, to be in charge of developing lamps as the chief of lamp engineering at the Hyundai Mobis research center in Yongin City, Gyeonggi Province.

The total number of researchers at Hyundai Mobis currently stands at over 2,700, according to the company.

Last year, Hyundai Mobis invested 690 billion won ($ 602.3 million) in research and development, up more than 40 percent compared to 2014.

By Kim Bo-gyung (lisakim425@heraldcorp.com)