Sony Honda Mobility used CES 2026 to unveil a new vehicle, the AFEELA Prototype 2026, while laying out updated timing for AFEELA 1 and a broader plan it describes as “Mobility as a Creative Entertainment Space.” The company said it presented AFEELA 1 as a pre-production model and confirmed that it is the first production model scheduled to begin customer deliveries in the US late this year. It also said a production model based on the newly debuted prototype is planned for launch in the US as early as 2028.
The company’s near-term rollout remains centered on California, with AFEELA 1 deliveries in California scheduled to begin within 2026 and an expansion planned to Arizona in 2027. Separately, SHM said deliveries in Japan are scheduled to begin in the first half of 2027. To support the launch, SHM said it will open “AFEELA Studio and Delivery Hubs” in Torrance and Fremont, California, combining showroom and delivery functions, and that a phased experiential program, AFEELA Advanced Access, will be offered to early reservation holders, with demo drives planned for late this year. SHM framed the updates as part of a long-term technology roadmap shaped by partnerships across technology, entertainment, and creation.
Alongside the product timeline, SHM described a shift in how it wants people to use in-car time. It said vehicles will evolve from driver-centric machines into intelligent partners that understand user preferences and emotions, maximizing the value of space and time during mobility. On driver assistance, SHM said it is enhancing its advanced driver assistance system, AFEELA Intelligent Drive, while evolving it into an end-to-end AI model that integrates Vision-Language Model (VLM). Starting with Level 2+ driver assistance that supports travel from the departure point to the destination, the company said it aims to achieve Level 4–equivalent capabilities in the future, transforming the in-vehicle space into a “drive-less” environment where occupants can enjoy entertainment. It also highlighted AFEELA Personal Agent, described as an interactive conversational AI that leverages Microsoft Azure OpenAI Service to deliver highly personalized, natural dialogue experiences tailored to individual users.
SHM also outlined several platform and ecosystem initiatives it says are intended to support that direction. The company said it will utilize solutions from Qualcomm Technologies’ Snapdragon Digital Chassis within AFEELA’s future electrical and electronic architecture, calling it part of an advanced suite of automotive products and solutions intended to enable AI-centered next-generation mobility experiences. Through the “AFEELA Co-Creation Program,” SHM said it will provide creators with access to information necessary for developing in-vehicle entertainment, including in-car themes and apps, while building cloud APIs and the development environment for Android applications on IVI (in-vehicle infotainment). It also said it is aiming to build an on-chain mobility service platform that leverages a token-based incentive model powered by crypto technologies, under the “X-to-Earn” concept, with an ecosystem spanning ideation, development, and experience and evaluation, and open to other automakers and service providers.
In detailing progress toward production, SHM said reservations for AFEELA 1 began in January 2025 in California, and that it has since opened AFEELA Studio showrooms and held vehicle exhibition events at various locations, welcoming more than 100,000 visitors and conducting over 24,000 in-vehicle demonstrations within the first year. It added that in fall 2025 it conducted trial production runs of AFEELA 1 on the production line at its contract manufacturing partner, Honda’s East Liberty Auto Plant in Ohio, and that pre-production vehicles produced there were exhibited at CES 2026. SHM described AFEELA 1 as integrating advanced software and high-performance hardware, with Advanced Driver Assistance Systems (ADAS), an interactive personal agent, and a cabin built around sound and optimized displays for apps and entertainment content.