Samsung (www.samsung.com">(www.samsung.com">www.samsung.com">(http://www.samsung.com">www.samsung.com">www.samsung.com">www.samsung.com">(http://www.samsung.com), the South Korean electronics giant, has agreed to buy Harman International Industries — a US automotive technology company — for $8 billion. This is the biggest acquisition in Samsung’s history, according to the Wall Street Journal.

Harman (www.harman.com) is best known for making car audio systems, but Samsung says that it is more interested in the company’s connected-car business, which supplies a car’s navigation services, on-board entertainment systems and connectivity to the rest of the world.

The deal, which is subject to approval by Harman shareholders and regulators, is expected to be completed in mid-2017.

The announcement comes after a massive recall of Samsung Galaxy Note 7 smartphones, which posed a fire risk due to the battery. Samsung has also announced a voluntary recall of 2.8 million top-loading washing machines, because the top could detach during a high-speed cycle and cause injury.

Young Sohn, president and chief strategy officer of Samsung Electronics, said: “The vehicle of tomorrow will be transformed by smart technology and connectivity in the same way that simple-feature phones have become smart devices over the past decade.

“Harman perfectly complements Samsung in terms of technologies, products and solutions, and joining forces is a natural extension of the automotive strategy we have been pursuing for some time.

“We see substantial long-term growth opportunities in the auto technology market, as demand for our specialised electronic components and solutions continues to grow.”