Smart move: BYD to bring intelligent driving system to mass market
Chinese electric vehicle (EV) leader BYD launched its "Intelligent Driving for All" strategy recently, aiming to equip all of its car models with the self-developed high-level intelligent driving system.
The Shenzhen-headquartered auto giant held a conference on February 10, officially releasing its self-developed intelligent driver assistance system: DiPilot.
BYD's DiPilot system contains three sets of technical solutions that will be deployed on different models of cars: DiPilot 600 for Yangwang Auto, BYD's premium brand; DiPilot 300 for BYD and Denza, a joint venture between BYD and German automaker Mercedes-Benz; and DiPilot 100 for BYD.
Among them, DiPilot 100 will be widely used in the first 21 BYD models, covering the price range from 70,000 yuan (US$9,562) to 200,000 yuan, including the lowest priced Seagull model.
Wang Chuanfu, chairman and president of BYD Group, believes that BYD has made a ground-breaking move by breaking the stereotype of high-level intelligent driving being a privilege of luxury cars, since models equipped with such systems can easily cost more than 200,000 yuan currently.
"Good technology should be available to everyone," Wang insisted.
All the car models that would be equipped with the intelligent driving system, as shown during BYD's conference held on February 10.
As a highlight, the intelligent driving system, which covers the largest number of models, boasts three core capabilities of intelligent driving, intelligent parking, and active safety, including: ICC (Integrated adaptive cruise control), HNOA (Highway Navigation on Autopilot), MNOA (Memory Navigation on Autopilot) and AVP (Automated Valet Parking).
On the one hand, it is able to complete driving tasks such as lane keeping, cruise driving and autonomous lane changing according to the path planned by the navigation to ensure the safety of long-distance driving on high-speed roads; on the other, it can also realize the functions of automatic locking and parking, according to the official release.
"Safety is the biggest luxury of EVs, and intelligent driving is the strongest guardian of safe traveling," said Wang, claiming that safety was the top priority of the intelligent system.
The system is able to realize intelligent driving of more than 1,000 kilometers with zero takeover by the driver, and the AEB (Autonomous Emergency Braking) function can stabilize braking at a speed of 100 kilometers per hour, ensuring instantaneous judgment in unexpected situations to avoid accidents, according to BYD officials.
"Safety is the biggest luxury of EVs, and intelligent driving is the strongest guardian of safe traveling," said Wang Chuanfu, chairman and president of BYD Group.
Early in 2018, BYD took the lead in the transformation of electrification by ongoing technological innovations such as blade batteries and DM (Dual Mode).
Amid fierce competition in intelligent driving, it's once again at the forefront by accelerating the widespread popularization of automotive intelligent technology.
Public data show that in 2024, BYD sold a total of 4,272,100 vehicles, a year-on-year increase of 41.26 percent, surpassing SAIC Group to become the sales leader in the domestic auto market.
It also exported 433,000 vehicles last year, a 71.8 percent annual surge, with export sales accounting for 10 percent of overall sales.
