Honda to Expand India R&D, Raise Local Sourcing and Slash Costs, Says CEO.

Japanese automaker Honda Motor Company plans to step up its research and development (R&D) operations in India as part of a broader effort to increase local content and reduce production costs for both domestic and export markets.

“India is very advanced in terms of software development, and currently we have a collaboration with KPIT, where about 2,000 software engineers are working on developing software for Honda,” said Toshihiro Mibe, Director, President, and Representative of Honda Motor Company, speaking to reporters in Tokyo. “The output of this partnership is not limited to India but is part of Honda’s global software strategy, to which KPIT is contributing greatly.”

KPIT Technologies, headquartered in Pune, is among the world’s largest independent software and system integration partners for the mobility sector. The company operates major engineering centres in Germany, the United States, Brazil, India, China, Thailand, and Japan, providing critical software development support to leading global automakers.

Honda’s increased focus on India underscores the country’s growing importance in the company’s global value chain, as it seeks to enhance competitiveness through localized innovation and cost efficiency.