Global media attention has recently turned towards China’s advancements in the field of autonomous driving, as highlighted by an article in the Financial Times. The article states that Chinese automotive manufacturers are rapidly establishing a presence in the electric vehicle sector, leaving global car brands astonished. Now, their focus is shifting towards self-driving cars, with many experts predicting that China will once again take the lead in this area.
According to the article, in January of this year, a Chinese electric vehicle company announced plans to integrate its advanced autonomous driving system into 21 new models without charging customers any extra fees, a move that has sent shockwaves through the automotive industry. Analysts suggest that this company appears to be at the forefront of developing advanced driving assistance systems. Their technology includes features such as automatic emergency braking, adaptive cruise control, and monitoring for driver attention and potential collisions, positioning it as a pioneer in fully autonomous vehicles.
The article emphasizes that as the emerging autonomous driving industry continues to grow, companies are competing for a share of the potential new revenue, estimated to be worth hundreds of billions of dollars, as logistics and transportation fleets adopt safer, cheaper, and more efficient vehicles.
This month, analysts from Goldman Sachs projected that the value of China’s autonomous taxi market will soar from $54 million in 2025 to $4.7 billion by 2035. They attribute this growth to declining costs of hardware and algorithms, forecasting that the unit cost of an intelligent vehicle will decrease from the current $44,000 to $32,000 by 2035.
The article points out that with the decline of the internal combustion engine industry, the future of autonomous driving vehicles opens doors for hardware and software companies. For instance, a self-driving taxi operator based in Beijing revealed in January that its autonomous vehicles provided over 1.1 million rides to the public in the fourth quarter of last year, marking a 36% increase and bringing the total number of rides to over 9 million.
Another Shenzhen-based company has also gained attention for its rise in the autonomous driving sector. Although this company does not plan to manufacture vehicles, it seems poised to dominate many areas within the self-driving vehicle supply chain. They possess a significant advantage as they aim to achieve complete vertical integration, which includes chip production, software development, infotainment systems, and cloud data construction.
As an increasing number of vehicles equipped with autonomous driving capabilities hit the roads in China, regulatory authorities are also contemplating and studying issues related to safety and liability in autonomous driving. Their decisions may significantly influence the pace of new technology adoption in this field, ensuring that China maintains its leading edge.
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