Samsung subsidiary Harman takes over ZF division for driver assistance

ZF Friedrichshafen AG is selling its division for driver assistance systems for passenger cars (ADAS) to Harman International, a subsidiary of the Samsung Group. The agreement includes the areas of Compute Solutions, cameras, radar, and driver assistance software. "With Harman, we have found the ideal partner to fully unlock the growth and innovation potential of our driver assistance business for passenger cars and to open up the best possible development prospects for employees," says ZF CEO Mathias Miedreich.

Harman is primarily known for the loudspeakers installed in cars, even if they sometimes bear brands like Bang & Olufsen or JBL. The Samsung Group values ZF's ADAS (Advanced Driver Assistance Systems) division at 1.5 billion euros in the context of the acquisition. The transaction "contributes to significantly reducing ZF's financial liabilities," confirms Miedreich.

ZF will henceforth concentrate on the areas of "chassis, powertrain, commercial vehicles, and industrial applications, in which we are global leaders." However, ZF will continue to work on driver assistance and autonomous driving for commercial vehicles. This part is not going to Harman. The areas of electronics for chassis technology and passive safety technology will remain entirely with ZF.

Samsung and self-driving cars

The Koreans have been working on technology for self-driving cars for at least a decade. In 2017, Samsung acquired Harman for eight billion US dollars, which at the time already generated two-thirds of its revenue from automotive manufacturers -- in addition to loudspeakers, with navigation systems, infotainment systems, and networks. Harman's existing business relationships with automotive manufacturers are intended to serve as a stepping stone for other group technologies to enter the business as well -- soon also the assistance technology from Friedrichshafen.

In 2017, Samsung budgeted another 300 million US dollars for investments in automotive startups and technology. The first step at the time was the acquisition of a stake in Vienna-based TTTech Auto for 75 million euros, a software specialist for automotive middleware. However, at the beginning of 2025, TTTech was sold to NXP, with 1,100 developers moving to NXP.

Even before 2017, Samsung had invested in several companies in this area and has since divested its stakes: AImotive (now a subsidiary of Stellantis') and Renovo for self-driving technology (now at Toyota), Quanergy Systems for lidar (insolvent), or the British AI accelerator developer Graphcore (now at Softbank). Samsung itself still does not want to build cars.

ZF needs to reduce debt

For ZF CFO Michael Frick, the "faster debt reduction" is the priority in the sale announced on Tuesday. In parallel, he is saving on e-car projects: "In addition, ZF -- like other market participants -- is restructuring its e-mobility business and repositioning unprofitable projects." All of this is intended to help comfortably achieve the projected business figures in the current fiscal year.

3,750 employees will transfer to Harman upon completion of the transaction, expected in the second half of 2026. Regulatory approvals are still pending.

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