Warren Buffett-Backed BYD Join Forces With Huawei For Advanced Autonomous Driving In Off-Road EVs

Warren Buffett-backed Chinese electric vehicle (EV) manufacturer, BYD BYDDY BYDDF, has teamed up with technology powerhouse Huawei to integrate the latter’s sophisticated autonomous driving system into BYD’s off-road “Fangchengbao” EVs.

What Happened: BYD has signed an agreement with Huawei to utilize Huawei’s Qiankun intelligent driving system in its off-road Fangchengbao EVs. The Bao 8 SUV, a member of the “Fangchengbao” lineup, will be the inaugural BYD model to incorporate this technology and is expected to be available later this year, Reuters reported on Tuesday.

BYD aims to elevate and increase the sales of its premium brands, including “Denza,” “Fangchengbao,” and “Yangwang,” which only represented 5% of its total sales in the first half of the year, according to data from the China Association of Automobile Manufacturers.

Despite being a dominant player in the EV market and having a significant cost advantage due to its vertical integration strategy, BYD continues to depend on external suppliers for intelligent features in its high-end models.

See Also: Tesla’s New York Gigafactory Touches New Production Milestone: Makes 8000 Supercharger Adapters In A Week

Why It Matters: This partnership comes after BYD’s recent efforts to strengthen its smart driving technology. In July 2024, BYD recruited Zhou Peng, a former Baidu Inc. executive, to advance its development of driver assistance technology. Furthermore, in December 2023, BYD secured a conditional testing license for level 3 autonomous driving on high-speed roads.

However, the partnership faces potential challenges from international regulations. In August, the U.S. Commerce Department considered a proposal to ban Chinese software in autonomous and connected vehicles, which could impact the testing of autonomous vehicles produced by Chinese companies on U.S. roads.

Berkshire Hathaway, led by Buffett, has been gradually reducing its stake in BYD. Despite this, BYD remains a dominant player in the Chinese automotive market, having driven Chinese automakers to outsell U.S. counterparts for the first time.

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This story was generated using Benzinga Neuro and edited by Pooja Rajkumari