Jul. 11, 2023
Source: Sina Finance
In recent months, local governments across China have been pushing forward autonomous driving commercialization, with Beijing making a particularly bold move: advancing into the “driverless-in-cabin” era.
Leading intelligent driving players are positioning accordingly. Desay SV focuses on perception and decision-making layers, Joyson Electronics is integrating AI into automotive electronics, and ThunderSoft is preparing to launch its central computing-oriented full-stack vehicle operating system.
Beijing to Launch First “Driverless-in-Cabin” Commercial Pilot
Soon, passengers in Beijing may be able to hail an autonomous vehicle with no safety operator in the driver’s seat and complete a paid journey — a milestone in China’s intelligent mobility development.
The Beijing High-Level Autonomous Driving Demonstration Zone Office announced it will open a commercial pilot for driverless-in-cabin smart passenger cars. Once qualified, companies will be able to provide regular, paid, fully driverless ride-hailing services within the demonstration zone.
The pilot emphasizes three aspects:
Stricter Service Capability Assessment – Evaluating vehicle safety performance, intervention frequency, and emergency handling ability through expert reviews.
Enhanced Daily Supervision – Requiring 1:1 remote operator assignment, with clear division of responsibilities for remote drivers and safety supervisors.
Strict Penalty Mechanisms – Implementing reset and revocation systems for non-compliance or technical underperformance.
Other cities are also accelerating. Shanghai recently issued its first driverless road testing permits to Baidu, AutoX, and Pony.ai for operations in Pudong, while Shenzhen granted pilot commercial licenses for driverless vehicles and issued unmanned delivery vehicle test licenses to Meituan, Neolix, and Rino.ai.
Paving the Way for Robotaxi Commercialization
Industry experts see this as a critical step toward a Robotaxi commercial loop. Roland Berger partner Wu Zhao notes that Robotaxi and autonomous freight trucks are expected to be the first viable business models, and driverless-in-cabin commercialization will be key to scaling Robotaxi operations.
China’s regulatory framework distinguishes between:
Safety operator presence (with or without a driver in the front seat)
Operational stage (testing, demo operation, or commercialization)
Beijing leads in combining full driverlessness with commercialization, having started a driverless Robotaxi commercial trial in Yizhuang in July 2022. By March 2023, the city moved into the passenger-carrying demo phase, with 116 driverless test vehicles accumulating nearly 2 million km and over 1.5 million paid orders, maintaining a 95%+ user satisfaction rate.
Listed Companies Move to Capture Market Growth
According to iiMedia Research, China’s autonomous driving market is projected to grow from RMB 3.05 billion in 2015 to RMB 267.6 billion by 2025.
Desay SV: High-performance IPU04 computing platforms are already in large-scale production for Li Auto, with strong order pipelines. The lightweight IPU02 domain controller targets mid- to high-volume passenger car segments.
Joyson Electronics: Advancing AI integration for high-level autonomous driving, developing high-compute domain controllers and smart connectivity solutions as a Tier-1 supplier.
ThunderSoft: Launching a full-stack vehicle OS for central computing platforms, enabling elastic computing, seamless data sharing, and AI-driven HMI innovations.
With supportive policies, maturing technology, and growing user acceptance, China is on track to become one of the first markets in the world to achieve fully driverless commercial operations — reshaping urban mobility and accelerating the global autonomous driving race.
