Yandex has announced a new electric car model called UMO 5A, which is technically identical to the GAC Aion Y Plus crossover. Production of this car will begin at the "Moskvich" plant, based on the fully Chinese version.
The main applicant in the documents is "EM Rus" LLC, while the manufacturer is the Moscow "Moskvich" plant. According to "Russian Automobile", the project did not become a full-fledged Yandex project, but is an initiative implemented with the help of partners. Initially, assembly options in China were considered, but in the end, the choice fell on "Moskvich".
The company also plans to expand its model range. A vacancy for the position of head of the automotive platform makes it clear that Yandex does not intend to develop cars from scratch: all future models, including potential hybrids, will be based on existing Chinese designs.
To successfully implement these ambitious plans, Yandex is actively attracting specialists from organizations such as NAMI, AvtoVAZ, and the "Atom" startup. At the same time, a strict secrecy regime is maintained around the development. Applicants report that before signing a non-disclosure agreement, they are not even told what classes of cars they will be involved in producing, let alone the details of the projects.
