For years we are listening to the cars software will be key when choosing a vehicle. The possibilities they offer are numerous but, for the moment, traditional companies seem to have not been able to get economic performance to it. Byd, however, gives his “eye of God” that promises to be decisive when buying the car.
His “eye of God” can be the least.
What is the “eye of God”? This is how Byd calls his driving aid systems or automated driving (under supervision). They obviously contemplate from adaptive cruise control systems to remote parking services, where you send orders from the mobile phone and the car park alone.
A price war. A few days ago, the Chinese company confirmed that it will include these systems completely free in all its cars, regardless of their price. The announcement fell like a bomb in the industry since this type of aids always They have been used to attract customers to a brand.
Tesla, for example, boast your autopilot And for years he has sold his Full self driving (FSD) as the great promise of a completely autonomous driving in all cars prepared for it. Xpeng in China have based their growth on this type of functions and is one of the reasons that have attracted Volkswagen for a collaboration between both manufacturers.
Make these systems available to all buyers, regardless of whether tens of thousands of euros pay for a car or a few thousand euros, Open a price war on a front that had not been seen so far. In addition, it puts the software as a central element for Decide a purchase.
Defined by software. For years we have heard manufacturers say that the vehicles of the future will be defined by the software and that It will be an added value to the vehicle itself. China has even demonstrated that it is a central element, as we will see.
In Europe, however, we are in the superficial layers. We talk about whether a car is more or less technological because it uses Android Automotiveits customization capacity or if you have opted for your own development that adds distinction to the brand and the model.
Despite this, The generated income is almost non -existent. Manufacturers have given blind sticks to the point that Volkswagen has had to delay the launch of key models (Porsche Macan and Audi Q6 e-tron) and Search for help in China either BMW has had to back down to controversial subscriptions such as the heating of the seats. Subscribe, however, to autonomous driving functions did seem like a perfect path to begin to make efforts to make efforts.
A bridge. But what if the finger points to the moon and we are looking at the finger? That is what you think of But auto insights. He exercises software -related consultancy work and usually participates in media such as Financial Times, Nikkei either The Economistamong others.
In his NewsletterHe points to that to understand the “gift” of his “eye of God” to buyers you should not look exclusively at car sales that Byd can convert, you have to look at the juice that can get a highly automated driving .
If people can activate a system of Level 2+ or Level 3 (During slow traffic situations), that opens huge potential opportunities to sell services, entertainment and others, while people move in these traffic jams. Think of a zoom call during a jam. Think about watching a movie. Play a video game.
A first approach. What he affirms has all the meaning of the world. The Chinese automobile industry is turning the car into a four -wheel chassis that arrives completely defined by the software. In fact, only See some videos From what is presented in each car hall to check that the car is now a tailor drawer where to watch movies, play video games or enjoy a karaoke.
Kevin Williams also told it well for Inside Evs. In his article he explained how Western manufacturers have become completely obsolete at what the interior of a Chinese car offers. An easy position if we attend to speech that the local client It begins to have about European and local cars.
Under way. What you are talking about in your weekly entrance is that Byd’s true business can be in everything that offers their cars once they behave as low -speed autonomous vehicles. It is a relatively easy level of autonomy to reach for the manufacturer since it is easy to drive for the car in a jam. The Mercedes can do it In specific places at speeds below 60 km/h.
Byd and any other manufacturer has the opportunity to have their own store with applications that compete for the attention of … driver? Is to move the mobile phone applications business to the carcharging a percentage per discharge to the owner of the application so that it can be put into operation in the vehicle. That discounting that it is not the vehicle manufacturer who offers these entertainment services or for labor productivity.
A private market. You have to understand the particularities of the Chinese market. There, the cities are gigantic and the driver passes, on average, more than 45 minutes to get to work daily. Those more than three quarters of an hour, however, barely suppose less than 30 kilometers of journeyso the average speed is very low.
This is decisive when it comes to understanding the cars offered. Chinese brands themselves have explained that the paths that are made by car are usually urban and rarely cover long distances such as in Europe and the United States. That is why they have cars where the space for the rear seats is prevail, the trunk is removed … and priority is given to the infotainment systems.
The latter has been key to understanding market evolution. More and more the customer prefers to give priority to the voice controls of the vehicle, their connectivity with the mobile phone, gigantic screens and access to any other service that helps him “expand” beyond the car itself.
Photo | Byd
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