Hyundai’s new Pleos Connect brings IONIQ 3 technology close to smartphone level
Hyundai introduced Pleos Connect, its next generation software based operating system, which will make its European debut in the new compact electric car IONIQ 3. Due to reach Europe in the second half of 2026, the system was built around the logic of a smartphone, with a more intuitive interface and an AI based voice assistant.
At the centre of Pleos Connect is Gleo AI, a voice assistant built on large language models. Unlike conventional systems, Gleo AI can understand context and more abstract commands, rather than simply reacting to fixed phrases.
That changes how the driver and passengers interact with the car. The system can recognise who is speaking in the cabin and respond personally, for example by switching on the seat heating for the person who gave the command. It can also handle several instructions at once, or help with online searches for news, weather or sport. Navigation and climate control can be managed through ordinary speech, which is precisely where in car systems usually promise ease and then quietly make you miss a physical knob.
Screens designed around attention
Pleos Connect uses two main displays, arranged to reduce driver distraction. The large central screen handles navigation, media and apps, with a split layout and a lower shortcut bar for the most frequently used functions. Behind the steering wheel sits a narrow driver display, placed directly in the driver’s line of sight and reserved for key information such as speed, route guidance and warnings.
Despite the strong digital focus, Hyundai kept physical buttons on the steering wheel and below the screen. That is a sensible decision. Not every function becomes better when it is hidden behind glass.
Apps without a connected phone
The system also introduces an App Market, allowing popular apps such as YouTube and Spotify to run directly through the car’s infotainment system without connecting a smartphone. For developers, Hyundai created the Pleos Playground platform, which should allow the app selection to grow over time.
The new navigation system is modular, so the driver can rearrange elements on the screen. It uses real time online maps and data gathered from other vehicles to suggest the fastest and most efficient route.
Sales of the new IONIQ 3 with Pleos Connect will begin in the second half of 2026. Hyundai’s idea is clear enough: the car screen should stop feeling like a slow copy of a phone and start behaving more like the thing drivers already use every day.
