Huawei, a Chinese telecommunications giant and smartphone maker, said it will invest $1 billion in self-driving car technology this year.
According to Chinese media (4/13), Huawei’s circular chairman told analysts the previous day that Huawei’s autonomous driving technology has already surpassed Tesla.
“This is much better than Tesla,” Xu Zhijun stressed, saying Huawei’s technology allows 1,000 kilometers of autonomous driving on city roads without human intervention.
Chairman Xu reiterated his position that Huawei will not manufacture cars directly. “Huawei does not produce cars, but will help automakers make good cars,” he said.
He said Huawei has decided to cooperate with three automakers, Beijing Automotive, Chongqing Changan Automotive and Guangzhou Automotive. And that they will label their sub-branded vehicles with “Huawei Inside”. This means that Huawei has self-driving technology in its vehicles.
Huawei plans to launch sub-branded technology for car starting in the fourth quarter of this year.
Prior to this, Arcfox Alpha SHBT vehicles, the first model that cooperated with Beijing Automotive Group’s Blue Park, will be unveiled at the Shanghai Motor Show on the 17th.
“There are 30 million vehicles sold in China every year,” Xu said. It is a big business even if we receive 10,000 yuan per unit.
Huawei, which is in crisis due to U.S. sanctions, is turning to new businesses such as self-driving cars and electric vehicles to survive.
“This year’s goal is to survive,” he said. He said the impact of the U.S. ban on semiconductor supplies will continue this year and beyond.
Chairman Xu also added that the U.S. Biden government has no illusion that it will cancel sanctions against Huawei.
