Volkswagen is to form a partnership between its Cariad software company and Chinese smart vehicle developer Horizon Robotics. It is hoped the agreement will accelerate the regional development of advanced driver assistance system (ADAS) and autonomous driving (AD) systems for the Chinese market. As part of the cooperation, the two companies plan to also establish a joint venture in China, with Cariad being majority shareholder and VW Group investing approximately US$2.3bn following the transaction’s completion in the first half of 2023.
The JV will seek to develop a highly optimized full stack ADAS/AD solutions for China to drive forward the integration of numerous functions on one chip, increasing the stability of the system, saving costs, and reducing energy consumption. The fully integrated software/hardware technology will, it is hoped, provide scalable as well as cost efficient ADAS/AD solutions for the Group’s BEV models in China.
“The partnership with Horizon Robotics is a central cornerstone of our strategy to realign and further strengthen our activities in our most important market worldwide. Localized technology development grants the region more autonomy to further expand its position in the dynamic automotive market. Cutting edge technology comprising the full software and hardware stack, which the new joint venture will develop, will enable us to tailor our products and services even faster and more consistently to the needs of our Chinese customers. Teaming up with Horizon Robotics will allow Volkswagen to accelerate the development of automated driving solutions as part of our New Auto strategy and drive the repositioning of our China business,” said Ralf Brandstätter, member of the management board of Volkswagen for China.