Multiple Companies Reveal Advances in Smart Cars and Chips; Hongqi Confirms New Model Launch at Beijing Auto Show

On April 15, Tesla CEO Elon Musk announced that the company’s AI chip design team had completed tape-out of its AI5 chip and revealed that higher-performance chips such as AI6 and Dojo3 are under development. Musk thanked TSMC and Samsung for their support in mass production and stated that AI5 is poised to become one of the world’s highest-volume AI chips. On the same day, Peng Lei, Product Director of Huawei’s Smart Selection Vehicles, confirmed on social media that the Luxeed brand has ranked first in sales of new energy sedans priced above RMB 300,000 for six consecutive months. Responding to external concerns about the pace of new product launches, he clearly stated that Luxeed will unveil a new vehicle at the Beijing Auto Show. Bosch’s intelligent cockpit solution, developed based on Qualcomm’s Snapdragon Cockpit Platform, has surpassed 10 million units in global cumulative deliveries—achieving a tenfold increase in just three years since reaching one million units in 2023. Xiaomi Automobile Technology Co., Ltd. disclosed a patent titled “Noise Reduction Processing Method, Apparatus, Vehicle, and Storage Medium,” which enhances in-vehicle noise reduction by identifying noise scenarios and applying adaptive filtering. Longu Microelectronics stated during its earnings briefing that it maintains deep collaboration with NVIDIA in areas including intelligent cockpits, ADAS, and automotive displays. Some of its products have already entered mass production, and the company expects its business scale to continue growing alongside expanding market demand. Chongqing Tailan New Energy launched its “Safe+” solid-state battery solution, specifically designed for embodied intelligence products, and has already delivered its first batch of battery packs to leading domestic robotics companies for multi-scenario testing. Yuansheng Intelligence completed a Pre-A funding round exceeding RMB 100 million, with proceeds earmarked for scaling up production capacity of its high-performance dexterous hand “Apex Hand,” building an ecosystem, and expanding globally. Meanwhile, Beijing Delta Yuanchuang Intelligent Technology also closed a Series C round exceeding RMB 1 billion, backed by investors including Hillhouse Capital, focusing on foundational models for humanoid robots and 3D world engine development. On the policy front, China’s Ministry of Industry and Information Technology (MIIT), Ministry of Public Security (MPS), and Ministry of Transport (MOT) jointly convened a meeting to launch a self-inspection and rectification campaign for road testing and pilot applications of intelligent connected vehicles. They emphasized strengthening end-to-end safety oversight and improving a three-tier evaluation mechanism involving national, local, and enterprise levels. Market data from the China Passenger Car Association (CPCA) shows that from April 1 to 12, nationwide passenger vehicle retail sales totaled 377,000 units, down 20% year-over-year; new energy vehicle (NEV) retail sales reached 224,000 units, down 11% year-over-year, with a penetration rate of 59.5%. South Korea’s auto exports in March amounted to USD 6.37 billion, up 2.2% year-over-year, driven by a 42.6% surge in NEV exports. In Europe, EV registrations in March rose 37% year-over-year to 540,000 units, marking the first year-over-year growth in global EV sales this year. Additionally, Uber plans to invest over USD 10 billion to accelerate its autonomous driving efforts, shifting toward an asset-heavy model. Domestically, China’s next round of fuel price adjustments will take effect on April 21, with significant downward revisions expected for gasoline and diesel prices.