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☆ China's automakers must adapt quickly or lose out on the EV boom in the face of regulatory scrutiny abroad and competition at home
▼ + stars: | 2024-05-03 | by ( Evelyn Cheng | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +7 min

The automaker is the joint venture partner of Honda and Toyota in China, and has an electric car brand called Aion. Expanding outside ChinaLike other automakers in China, GAC is also turning overseas. China's overseas car sales surged last year, putting the country on par with Japan as the world's largest exporter of cars. Dyer expects that to drive overseas demand for Chinese electric cars. Chinese consumers placed almost twice as much importance on tech features compared with U.S. consumers, Dyer said, citing AlixPartners' survey.

Persons: Evelyn Cheng, Tesla, Feng Xingya, Feng, Wei Haigang, Wei, Stephen Dyer AlixPartners, There's, Stephen Dyer, AlixPartners, Dyer, BYD, Nio, CATL, Zhong Shi Organizations: CNBC, GAC, Labor, Huawei, Honda, Toyota, China Passenger Car Association, EU, U.S, Factories, Greater China Business U.S, Ministry of Commerce, Tech, Volkswagen, SAIC Motor, Battery, China Automobile Dealers Association, Automotive, Robotics, Lotus Technology, Geely Locations: Beijing, Evelyn Cheng BEIJING, China, East, Mexico, Japan, Malaysia, Thailand, Egypt, Brazil, Turkey, Amsterdam, Greater China, Asia, U.S, Europe

☆ The U.S. is trying to tighten the screws on Chinese AI. What that means for stocks
▼ + stars: | 2023-10-22 | by ( Evelyn Cheng | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +5 min

The artificial intelligence behind ChatGPT-like products and autonomous driving is driving enormous demand for Nvidia's chips in China. Chinese companies also dominate the burgeoning electric car market , where Nvidia has had a fast-growing business of selling chips for assisted and fully autonomous driving. When it comes to such chips for cars, Nomura analysts said there's little reason to worry. Auto chip market BYD, Nio , Li Auto and Xpeng are among the China-based electric automakers using the Orin chip. In the automotive chip category, they noted Nvidia's Thor chip and Qualcomm's Snapdragon Ride Flex chip both fall into that more advanced category.

Persons: Orin, Orin X, Joel Ying, Li Auto, Albert Liu, Weeks, Kneron, Liu, Julian Ma, Ma, Inceptio, Nomura, Inovance Organizations: Nvidia, Nomura, Nomura China Technology, Auto, CNBC's East Tech West, Apple, HSBC, SEC, U.S, Management Locations: China, U.S, Nomura China, South, German, Inovance's, Hong Kong

☆ Munich car show shines spotlight on China competition in EV race
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-04 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

A Renault wallbox charging station is used by a Renault Captur hybrid car at a dealership in Les Sorinieres, near Nantes, France, October 23, 2020. About 41% of exhibitors at this year's event are headquartered in Asia, with the number of Chinese companies having more than doubled, including players across batteries and EV production such as BYD, CATL and XPeng. "Europe needs to stop being naive from a macroeconomic point of view in the face of China," Gilles Le Borgne, Renault's (RENA.PA) engineering head, told journalists on Sunday, pointing to the country's control of the full battery supply chain. Chinese and German players, including top German carmakers and suppliers and China's LeapMotors and Horizon Robotics, will also speak at a Chinese EV conference set for Wednesday and Thursday for the first time outside China as part of the IAA. ($1=0.9273 euros)Reporting by Victoria Waldersee, Gilles Gillaume and Christina Amann; Editing by Friederike Heine and Clarence FernandezOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

Persons: Stephane Mahe, Gilles Le Borgne, Fabian Brandt, Oliver Wyman, Victoria Waldersee, Gilles Gillaume, Christina Amann, Friederike Heine, Clarence Fernandez Organizations: Renault, REUTERS, Rights, Horizon Robotics, EV, IAA, Mercedes, Benz, BMW, Klasse, Volkswagen, Thomson Locations: Les Sorinieres, Nantes, France, Asia, Europe, China

☆ 'We are ready to engage': Europe's biggest carmakers brace for China's EV challenge
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-04 | by ( Elliot Smith | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +5 min

BMW CEO Oliver Zipse speaks during the presentation of the new BMW "New Class" during an event ahead of the IAA motor show in Munich. Europe's dominant position in the automotive sector was established over many decades through its capacity to build superior combustion engines. The German behemoth has already created automotive software company CARIAD, as well as partnering with Chinese EV startup Xpeng, joint venture partner SAIC and autonomous driving company Horizon Robotics. watch nowHe added that Volkswagen has established "huge cost initiatives" and sees big opportunities to scale up its EV production while reducing battery production costs by 50%. Our electricity costs compared to China or North America are too high," Skoda CEO Klaus Zellmer told CNBC on Monday.

Persons: Oliver Zipse, Christophe Périllat, Luca De Meo, Ampere, De Meo, CNBC's Annette Weisbach, Oliver Blume, " Blume, Blume, Klaus Zellmer, Joe Biden's, BEV, Zellmer Organizations: BMW, IAA, Getty, CNBC, Volkswagen, Renault, IAA Mobility, SAIC, Horizon Robotics, Volkswagen Group, CRU Group, Skoda Locations: Munich, China, Europe, North America, U.S, Canada, Spain, Germany

☆ China's EV slowdown drags down Nvidia's 'next billion-dollar business'
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-25 | by ( Evelyn Cheng | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +5 min

Nvidia automotive segment primarily sells chip systems for assisted driving. Colette Kress Nvidia's Chief Financial OfficerThe $253 million segment revenue was also well below the $309.3 million forecast by a FactSet analyst poll. Although still a fraction of the chipmaker's business, automotive revenue has grown rapidly from just over $100 million a quarter two years ago. Bloomberg | Bloomberg | Getty ImagesCounterpoint's Wang pointed out that Nvidia's products are concentrated in the high-end automotive segment. Analog Devices on Wednesday reported automotive revenue of $747.6 million for the three months ended July 29, down by 5% from the prior quarter.

Persons: Jensen Huang, Alex Wong, Huang didn't, Colette Kress, Brady Wang, Xpeng, Xpeng's, Xinzhou Wu, Xiaopeng, Huang, Counterpoint's Wang, David Wong Organizations: Nvidia, Getty, Local, Counterpoint Research, Nvidia Nio, Bloomberg, NVIDIA, Robotics, Nomura, Qualcomm, China Passenger Car Association Locations: BEIJING, China, Xpeng, Santa Clara , California

The House Select Committee on the Chinese Communist Party sent letters to four separate U.S. venture capital firms, including Qualcomm's venture arm, expressing "serious concern" about their investments in Chinese tech startups. The letters, which were made public on Wednesday, were sent to GGV Capital, GST Ventures, Qualcomm Ventures, and Walden International. Qualcomm Ventures, for example, made 13 investments in Chinese A.I. Walden, a smaller firm, was identified as a particularly significant backer of Chinese AI companies. He said at the time he found there was "broad support" among venture capitalists and others to keep U.S. asset managers from investing in Chinese AI firms.

Persons: Mike Gallagher, Wisconsin Republican Mike Gallagher, Raja Krishnamoorthi, Janet Yellen, Antony Blinken, Gallagher, Krishnamoorthi, SenseTime, GGV, Didi, Megvii, Abu, Walden, Intellifusion, Neil Shen helming Organizations: U.S, Capitol, Chinese Communist Party, GGV, Ventures, Qualcomm Ventures, Walden International, Wisconsin Republican, Treasury, New York Times, Qualcomm, Tiger Global Management, Tiger Global, Denglin Technology, Georgetown's Center for Security, Emerging Technology, Macquarie Group, GSR Ventures, Center for Security, Horizon Robotics, Silicon Valley, CNBC, U.S . Commerce Department, Street, Sequoia Capital, Sequoia Locations: Illinois, China, U.S, Silver, Denglin, Silicon Valley, San Francisco, Shanghai, Beijing, Singapore, Megvii, Sequoia China

☆ Volkswagen China chief asks China's premier Li for clarity on data transfers
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-27 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

BERLIN, June 27 (Reuters) - Volkswagen's (VOWG_p.DE) head of its business in China said on Tuesday that the carmaker needed clarity on cross-border data transfers in a meeting with the country's Premier Li Qiang, asking how China would cooperate with Europe amid rising political tensions. "As a globalized industry, the transformation of the automotive sector highly depends on international exchange of personnel, data and knowledge. We therefore need more clarity on cross-border data transfers," executive Ralf Brandstaetter said, according to a copy of the speech held at a World Economic Forum meeting in Tianjin. "What are the major considerations of China, and how China will cooperate with Europe in this regard?" SAIC Volkswagen Automotive Co joined in the price war in March, offering 3.7 billion yuan ($512.52 million) in cash subsidies for car purchases in China.

Persons: Li Qiang, Ralf Brandstaetter, Brandstaetter, Victoria Waldersee, Matthias Williams Organizations: Volkswagen, Qualcomm, Horizon Robotics, Tesla, SAIC Volkswagen Automotive Co, Thomson Locations: BERLIN, China, Europe, Tianjin, North America, Italian, Hefei

☆ China's BYD beefs up autonomous driving credentials with new unit, hiring spree
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-17 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

Current BYD recruiting advertisements for engineers specialising in autonomous driving that target top Chinese universities such as Zhejiang University, indicate that the hiring is ongoing. BYD set up an intelligent driving research division in Shanghai last year, according to three sources with direct knowledge of the matter. The automaker, which is 9.87% owned by Warren Buffett's Berkshire Hathaway Inc (BRKa.N) and had some 660,000 employees as of April, declined to elaborate on its autonomous driving strategy. BYD has also this year teamed up with autonomous driving chip technology firms Nvidia (NVDA.O) and Horizon Robotics (RBOT.TO), saying it wanted to develop more intelligent vehicles. Both are high-volume models and further advances in BYD autonomous driving features would popularise the technology within China.

☆ VW's CARIAD software chief promises progress one jump at a time
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-09 | by ( Joseph White | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

[1/2] A technician works on the final inspection of an electric Volkswagen ID. REUTERS/Matthias Rietschel/DETROIT, Jan 9 (Reuters) - Volkswagen’s software division, CARIAD, has emerged from a review ordered by VW's new chief executive with a plan to work toward a unified software architecture for future vehicles one jump at a time, according to CARIAD chief Dirk Hilgenberg. “I call our program 'triple jump',” Hilgenberg told Reuters at the CES technology trade show in Las Vegas. “You do one jump after another.”The next key step will be the launch of the Porsche Macan SUV in 2024, which will have VW’s new premium software architecture. Volkswagen's current status is in-between: Software now deployed allows its "ID" electric vehicles to be updated remotely, with a fix for what Hilgenberg called “teething problems”.

☆ Volkswagen no longer investing in self-driving startup Argo AI
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-26 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

BERLIN, Oct 26 (Reuters) - Volkswagen AG (VOWG_p.DE) is no longer investing in Argo AI, the company said on Wednesday, concentrating its automated driving efforts on its existing partnerships with Bosch and Horizon Robotics in China. Volkswagen disclosed a $2.6 billion investment in Argo AI, the Pittsburgh-based self-driving startup, in June 2020. The investment meant the startup was jointly controlled by the German carmaker and Ford Motor Co (F.N), which made an initial investment in Argo AI shortly after it was founded. "Volkswagen is working with Argo AI to enable further working opportunities for employees and continue developing the promising projects on autonomous driving. All further cooperations with Ford remain unchanged," Volkswagen's statement said.

☆ Temasek-backed Vertex set to raise nearly $500 mln for new China-focused fund
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-18 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

BEIJING/HONG KONG, Oct 18 (Reuters) - Venture capital firm Vertex Ventures, backed by Singapore state investor Temasek, is set to raise nearly $500 million for a new fund that will invest in efforts to step up China's domestic tech development, a senior executive said. The new fund's size will exceed an initial target of $400 million, compare with an earlier, similar fund that raised $275 million, said Tay Choon Chong, managing partner at Vertex Ventures China. Register now for FREE unlimited access to Reuters.com Register"China is pivoting from relying on imported technologies to its own tech know-how," Tay said. The latest Vertex fund comes amid a slowdown this year in U.S. dollar-denominated fundraising by China-focused venture capital and private equity firms. While looking for investment opportunities involving companies developing advanced technologies, Vertex will also look for firms that have potential in reducing Beijing's reliance on foreign suppliers, Tay said.

☆ Volkswagen to take 60% stake in tech joint venture with China's Horizon Robotics
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-13 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

BERLIN, Oct 13 (Reuters) - Volkswagen (VOWG_p.DE) will invest 2.4 billion euros ($2.33 billion) and take a 60% stake in a new joint venture with Chinese technology company Horizon Robotics for autonomous driving software and hardware, the carmaker said on Thursday. The companies will work together to develop technology that can integrate numerous functions for autonomous driving onto a single chip, the statement said. Horizon Robotics, founded in 2015, supplies customers including Volkswagen's Audi, Continental (CONG.DE), Li Auto and SAIC, according to its website. The carmaker, which makes around 40% of sales and half of profits in the country, holds a 75% stake in a joint venture with JAC <600418.SS<, a 50% stake with SAIC (600104.SS) and 40% with FAW [RIC:RIC:SASACJ.UL]. ($1 = 1.0290 euros)Register now for FREE unlimited access to Reuters.com RegisterReporting by Victoria Waldersee Editing by Madeline ChambersOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ Volkswagen to invest up to 2 bln euros in JV with China's Horizon Robotics - reports
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-12 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

Volkswagen logo is pictured at the 2022 New York International Auto Show, in Manhattan, New York City, U.S., April 13, 2022. REUTERS/Brendan McDermid/File PhotoBERLIN, Oct 12 (Reuters) - Volkswagen (VOWG_p.DE) plans to to invest up to 2 billion euros ($1.94 billion) in a joint venture with China's Horizon Robotics, Handelsblatt and Manager Magazin reported on Wednesday. Reuters reported earlier that VW planned a significant investment in a joint venture in the country for software production. It operates numerous joint ventures in China, holding a 75% stake in its venture with JAC (600418.SS), a 50% stake with SAIC (600104.SS) and 40% with FAW (SASACJ.UL). ($1 = 1.0304 euros)Register now for FREE unlimited access to Reuters.com RegisterReporting by Kirsti Knolle, Victoria Waldersee, Editing by Miranda MurrayOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

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