Honda and Huawei jointly develop unmanned driving technology

Honda aims to strengthen its presence in the Chinese electric vehicle market by entering into a strategic partnership with local technology giant Huawei. As part of the collaboration, Huawei’s advanced smart driving solutions will be integrated into Honda’s new electric vehicle models under the «Ye» brand. This collaboration reflects a growing trend among automakers that are increasingly turning to self-driving technologies from Huawei.

The collaboration will be integrated into Honda’s new electric vehicle models under the Ye brand.

About the «Ye» brand and its launch

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The «Ye» brand was introduced in April 2024 as a separate brand for Chinese electric vehicle buyers. The «Ye» lineup currently features three vehicles: the Ye P7, Ye S7 and Ye GT. The Ye P7 and Ye S7 were expected to be released in late 2024, but the launch was delayed until the first quarter of 2025. The reason for the delay was problems with marketing strategy, communications and failed expectations related to the brand’s smart technology compared to the demands of Honda’s Japanese shareholders.

Ye P7.

Collaboration with Huawei

Instead of continuing to develop its own technology for the Chinese market, Honda has decided to use Huawei’s smart driving solutions for its «Ye» models. This decision is largely due to the slow progress of Honda’s autonomous driving technology, which has faced challenges in the form of regulatory barriers. By partnering with Huawei, Honda is able to significantly accelerate the process and enter the market with ready-made high-tech solutions.

The choice between Honda and Huawei

technologies.

Interestingly, local auto analysts speculate that future Ye models may be offered in various versions equipped with either the Honda Sensing 360+ system or smart driving solutions from Huawei. This will give consumers a choice between Honda’s proprietary technologies and Huawei’s innovative solutions.

Honda Sensing 360+ will also be available.

Sales Challenges and Production Expansion

Honda is entering China’s electric vehicle market at a time when the company is facing a drop in overall sales in the region. In the first 11 months of 2024, Honda’s sales in China fell 30.7 percent year-on-year.

Honda’s sales in China are down 30.7 percent.

Despite the sales challenges, however, Honda is aggressively expanding its production in China. The company has two electric vehicle plants in the country. The first was opened in October 2023 as part of a joint venture with Dongfeng Motor in Wuhan, Hubei province. The second plant was launched in December 2023 in Guangzhou, Guangdong Province, in collaboration with GAC Group. The expected annual production capacity of each plant is 120,000 vehicles.

Huangzhou.