BYD Partners with Huawei for Advanced Autonomous Driving System in Off-Road EVs

Chinese electric vehicle (EV) leader BYD (SZ:002594) has announced a collaboration with Huawei to incorporate the tech giant’s advanced autonomous driving system into its off-road Fangchengbao EVs. The Bao 8 SUV, part of the Fangchengbao lineup, will debut with Huawei’s Qiankun intelligent driving system later this year.

This partnership marks a significant step for BYD as it seeks to upscale its offerings and boost sales of its premium brands—Denza, Fangchengbao, and Yangwang—aiming to enhance profitability. Despite these efforts, these brands represented only 5% of BYD’s total sales in the first half of the year, according to the China Association of Automobile Manufacturers.

The collaboration with Huawei underscores BYD’s need to accelerate its smart driving capabilities amid rising competition. While BYD has long led the EV market through a vertical integration strategy that includes in-house battery production, it has relied on external suppliers for advanced driver-assistance systems (ADAS) in its higher-end models, such as using Momenta ADAS for Denza cars.

The partnership with Huawei also highlights the growing influence of Huawei in the EV sector, where it is becoming a key supplier of ADAS technology. Notably, Volkswagen’s Audi is also set to use Huawei’s ADAS in its EVs for the Chinese market.