It was not meant to be.
Shortly after Honda discontinued several upcoming electric vehicles of its own, Sony and Honda's joint electric vehicle project Afeela has come to an abrupt end.
In a joint statement, the companies said they would "discontinue the development and launch of its first model, AFEELA 1, and its second model," as well as review their business direction together.
While Sony Honda Mobility (SHM), the joint automotive venture between Sony and Honda, has not effectively been killed yet, the statement said the company will "continue to discuss and evaluate the future of SHM," with an announcement coming "at the earliest possible opportunity."
In other words, with no cars on the horizon, SHM is on life support, and it seems unlikely it will ever do much besides be unceremoniously dismantled in the near future.
Unlike Honda's "0 Series" concepts, SHM's Afeela appeared to be quite close to production, with the company showing an upgraded version of Afeela 1 just months ago at CES.
The sleek, techy Afeela 1 was envisioned as a car that puts entertainment first, with features including PlayStation Remote Play, an AI assistant, and videoconferencing. The starting price was set at $89,000 in the U.S., with the launch intended for late 2026.
The "second model" mentioned in SHM's statement is likely the Afeela 2 SUV, which was supposed to launch further down the line.