BYD will invest RMB 100 billion in vehicle intelligence in the future to lead the way in NEV development, the company’s chairman said.
(Image credit: BYD)
BYD (OTCMKTS: BYDDF) has unveiled its vehicle intelligence strategy, after rising to become the world’s largest new energy vehicle (NEV) maker over the past few years.
The company unveiled the Xuanji Architecture as the centerpiece of its vehicle intelligence at an event held on January 16 in Shenzhen, where it is headquartered.
The Xuanji Architecture consists of a central brain, cloud-based AI, vehicle-based AI, vehicle networking, 5G network, satellite network, sensing chain, control chain, data chain, and mechanical chain, BYD said.
The central brain is compatible with a variety of chips and can also bring about expansion of computing power through chip decoupling. It will be developed and produced by BYD itself, and in the future it will carry chips with a computing power of up to 1,000 Tops and 2,000 Tops, according to the company.
The company also announced the Xuanji AI foundation model, Dilink intelligent cockpit, and upgraded Dipilot smart driving system.
BYD will invest RMB 100 billion ($14 billion) in vehicle intelligence in the future to lead the way for new energy vehicles (NEVs), said the company’s chairman Wang Chuanfu, without mentioning how many years these investments will span.
Xuanji Architecture, e-Platform 3.0, DiSus vehicle body control system, and e⁴ technology platform are all part of BYD’s vehicle intelligence technologies.
BYD currently has a smart driving team of more than 4,000 people, with more than 3,000 being software engineers, according to Wang.
BYD recruited over 30,000 fresh college graduates in 2023, a talent resource that was previously unavailable, he said.
In the future, BYD’s high-level intelligent driving system will come standard on its models priced over RMB 300,000, while models priced between RMB 200,000 and RMB 300,000 offer paid options.
To date, BYD vehicles equipped with the L2 smart driving systems have surpassed 2.6 million units.
More than 57 percent of BYD’s vehicles sold in 2023 are equipped with the smart driving systems, and this percentage will further increase in 2024, according to Wang.
BYD will launch more than 10 LiDAR-equipped models in 2024, he said.
BYD already has an in-depth layout for more advanced L3 smart driving, and became the first Chinese car company to receive an L3 test license in July 2023, Wang said.
BYD has previously been conservative in its marketing of smart-driving technology, announcing that progress only on December 27, even though it received the license in July.
($1 = RMB 7.1911)
BYD’s 1st car carrier sets sail fully loaded, 7 more to join fleet in next 2 years
