Will next year be the acceleration year for the popularization of autonomous driving? Intelligence becomes the second half of the automotive revolution, and the industrial chain continues to boom.
According to a release on Huawei’s official website, during the 2023 China Mobile Global Partner Conference, Huawei’s rotating chairman, Hu Houkun, delivered a speech. Hu stated, “The era of autonomous driving is accelerating, and I boldly predict that 2024 will be the year when the popularization of autonomous driving in China takes off.”
“By integrating the intelligence of the car, the perception of roadside infrastructures, and the computing power of cloud edges, we promote the coordinated development of cars, roads, and clouds, making urban transportation smoother and management more efficient. This is an innovative direction worth our attention,” he added.
Yu Chengdong, the chairman of Huawei’s Intelligent Car Solution BU, also stated at a press conference that Huawei invested 500 million in the new Wenjie M7, using solid materials and the best technology to make it not just an “intelligent cockpit ceiling” but also an “intelligent driving ceiling”.
Wenjie’s new M7 is trending, with its emphasis on autonomous driving.
For the Wenjie autonomous driving system, the person in charge at Cylas Motors introduced that the new M7 is equipped with the HUAWEI ADS 2.0 advanced autonomous driving system, achieving high-speed, urban advanced autonomous driving without relying on high-precision maps. It is expected that by the end of this year, the urban Intelligent Driving Navigation Assist (Urban NCA) will be available nationwide.
In terms of configuration, the new M7 Intelligent Drive version is equipped with a top-mounted LiDAR, three millimeter-wave radars, 11 high-definition visual perception cameras, and 12 ultrasonic radars. The intelligent cockpit is equipped with HarmonyOS Intelligent Cockpit 3.0, adding a super desktop function, enabling unified and convenient control of multiple devices.
Recently, the Wenjie new M7 has “quickly become popular”. During the National Day holiday, Yu Chengdong posted sales reports of the new M7 in his social circle. After a full “Golden Week” holiday, more than 50,000 units of the new M7 have been booked. Moreover, on October 6th, the booking number exceeded 7,000, setting a new record.
Subsequently, Yu Chengdong further revealed that as of October 7, the pre-sale price of the Wenjie M9, which ranges from 500,000 to 600,000 yuan, had accumulated 10,450 blind orders, with 8,040 remaining.
Pacific Securities pointed out in a research report that the release of the new Wenjie M7 is expected to trigger a new round of arms race in automobile intelligence, and intelligence is the next hotspot in the car competition.
Currently, many domestic and foreign car companies are accelerating the research and development of autonomous driving technology. In July of this year, Xiaopeng Motors revealed that they, together with Volkswagen, will jointly develop models based on Xiaopeng’s G9 platform, intelligent cockpit, and advanced driver assistance system software. In August, media reports said that Tesla plans to form an operations team to promote its Full Self-Driving solution in the Chinese market.
On the policy front, favorable policies for L3 are being implemented in succession. In June, the Deputy Minister of the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology clearly stated that they would initiate pilot projects for the entry and on-road use of intelligent connected vehicles, supporting the commercial application of L3 and higher levels of autonomous driving functions. In July, the “National Vehicle Networking Industry Standard System Construction Guide” was officially issued.
Huabao Securities stated in a research report that intelligence is the second half of the car revolution, and intelligent functions have become an important factor for consumers when buying cars. Guosheng Securities also pointed out that with the acceleration of intelligence iteration, car companies are expected to start shifting from hardware manufacturing to software ecosystem, changing profit models, enhancing brand stickiness, and leading car companies are expected to benefit first, with the industrial chain’s prosperity continuing to rise.