Smart driving capabilities are emerging as the next major differentiator for carmakers now that electrification has become the industry norm in China, a shift on clear display at Auto Guangzhou, China’s final major industry event this year, showcasing 1,085 vehicles from local Chinese carmakers and global brands. Among them, 629 models (58%), are electrified ones, whether purely electric, plug-in hybrid or range-extended. The percentage was a sharp rise from 43.7% a year earlier. Domestic companies including BYD, XPeng, Nio and Voyah are showcasing their latest lineups and foreign brands such as Volkswagen and Toyota are showing that they are leaning heavily on electrification. The shift aligns with consumer demand. China’s NEV sales rose 32% in the first 10 months of the year to 12.94 million units, according to the China Association of Automobile Manufacturers (CAAM). In October, NEVs accounted for 51.6% of monthly new car sales, the first time they surpassed 50%.
As almost all carmakers have NEVs in their lineup, they are pinning hopes on smart driving abilities and in-cabin features to stay ahead of rivals. The new trend has made the biggest highlight of the show not any carmaker but Huawei. Its intelligent automotive solutions unit is participating in the event for the first time, exhibiting models that feature its hardware and software. Meanwhile, Huawei’s Harmony Intelligent Mobility Alliance (HIMA), which has been codeveloping brands with carmakers, is seeing its booth teeming with visitors. HIMA's members have increased to five – Aito, Luxeed, Stelato, Maextro and Shangjie – with their combined sales hitting 1 million units in 43 months. The meteoric sales have convinced car buyers that Huawei excels in smart driving, and the rise of those brands, especially Aito, which is codeveloped with the previously rather uncompetitive Seres, has prompted other carmakers to follow suit. Besides the five brands in HIMA, Huawei’s latest joint projects – Qijing with GAC and Yijing with Dongfeng – also debuted on the eve of Auto Guangzhou this year.
Both companies have vowed to invest tens of billions of yuan into the programs. Qijing plans to launch two models in 2026, including a shooting brake that has completed extreme-heat testing and is scheduled for a June market release. Yijing is scheduled to unveil its first model at the Beijing auto show in April 2026 and says it will add at least one model a year. Multiple new models, including GAC Hyper’s A800 and Voyah’s Free+, are equipped with Huawei’s full suite of cockpit and driving systems. Japanese brands are also adopting Huawei solutions, with Nissan introducing the HarmonyOS-equipped Altima and GAC Toyota confirming the bZ7 as its first model to integrate Huawei’s cockpit. Huawei’s name dominates marketing materials across booths, with “Huawei intelligent driving” and “HarmonyOS cockpit” printed prominently beside display vehicles. Jin Yuzhi, CEO of Huawei’s intelligent automotive solutions unit, said 33 vehicle models from 14 automaker brands now adopt the company’s intelligent driving platform, Qiankun. In October alone, monthly sales of Qiankun-equipped vehicles surpassed 100,000 units.
Momenta is also a popular choice for global carmakers. One example is GAC Toyota’s bZ7. It adopts Huawei’s smart cabin but chooses Momenta as its smart driving solution provider, as Toyota is one of Momenta’s investors. BMW and Mercedes are working with Momenta as well to tailor solutions for their models, the China Daily reports.
