Sony Says The Vision-S Concept Car Won't See Production

Sony has been teasing a futuristic autonomous car known as the Vision-S concept car that many hoped signaled some sort of production intent. Sony recently confirmed that it has no plans to mass-produce or sell the Vision-S to consumers. Sony has said that it won't become an automaker and that the Vision-S is simply a platform for testing autonomous technology and experimentation with PlayStation for cars.

Vision-S was created by leveraging technology and knowledge Sony acquired across multiple business categories ranging from cameras and computing to entertainment. While you won't have a Vision-S sitting in your driveway at some point in the future, the upside is the project could lead to autonomous vehicles of the future with PlayStation entertainment on board and cutting-edge audio.

Our most recent glimpse at the Vision-S concept came during the all-digital CES show earlier this month. At the show, Sony was showing off footage of the Vision-S in testing on public roads with the goal of optimizing safety. That led many to think that meant Sony had at least some intention of producing the car.

Car and Driver reports that a Sony spokesperson reached out to the publication and said that it had no plans to mass-producer sell the vehicle "at present." The spokesperson said Sony is exploring how it can contribute meaningfully to the era of autonomous driving.

A future with autonomous cars that can drive us on road trips while passengers relax and enjoy the scenery and play some PlayStation games sounds pretty good to us. It certainly not a surprise that Sony has no intention of becoming an automaker, but many hoped the cool Vision-S would be produced. It's worth noting that the "at present" statement certainly doesn't rule out production completely.