Auto retail disruption Amazon partners with Hyundai to sell cars online (NASDAQ:AMZN)

Amazon (NASDAQ:AMZN) announced at the Los Angeles Auto Show that it is breaking into the auto retail sector through a partnership with Hyundai Motor Company (OTCPK:HYMTF).

The Seattle tech giant plans to launch online vehicle sales in the U.S. in 2024 with the South Korean automaker. Auto buyers will have the option to buy their Hyundai (OTCPK:HYMTF) vehicle on Amazon’s website and then pick it up from their local dealer

As part of the collaboration between the companies, Hyundai (OTCPK:HYMTF) named AWS as its preferred cloud provider to help facilitate digital transformation, and noted that the Alexa Built-in experience is coming to Hyundai’s next-generation vehicles.

“Hyundai is a very innovative company that shares Amazon’s passion for trying to make customers’ lives better and easier every day,” said Amazon CEO Andy Jassy.

“Our broad, strategic partnership should do just that, from changing the ease with which customers can buy vehicles online, to making it simple to use Alexa in Hyundai vehicles for entertainment, shopping, smart home adjustments, and calendar checks, to enabling Hyundai to transform their customer experiences and business operations by moving to AWS. We look forward to inventing together for many years.”

Hyundai (OTCPK:HYMTF) will be the first brand available for customers to purchase. Amazon (AMZN) did not disclose when other automakers might be added to the program.

The partnership adds incremental competition for auto retailers such as CarMax (KMX) -6.0%, Vroom (VRM) -7.2%, Sonic Automotive (SAH) -6.1%, AutoNation (AN) –5.2%, and Carvana (CVNA) -5.7%.