Facing eight consecutive months of declining sales, China’s electric vehicle giant BYD has released China’s first 4-nanometer intelligent driving chip, seeking to boost demand in the highly competitive Chinese market.
According to The Beijing News, BYD Group Chairman Wang Chuanfu launched the company’s self-developed 4nm intelligent driving chip, Xuanji A3, at BYD’s Intelligent Strategy Conference on Thursday (May 28).
Bloomberg pointed out that BYD’s breakthrough in semiconductors is approaching the leading position of China’s technology giant Huawei. Huawei’s current chips use a 7nm process, and the company recently committed to launching 1.4nm chips by 2031.
The report states that the Xuanji A3 chip is designed to make BYD’s computer-assisted driving technology stand out in China’s electric vehicle market, in response to challenges from competitors including Xpeng Motors and Xiaomi.
Wang Chuanfu said Thursday that the Xuanji A3 boasts the industry’s best energy efficiency, consuming 20% less power than similar semiconductor products. The chip has now begun large-scale mass production.
It is reported that the world’s most advanced chip is currently TSMC’s 2nm N2 process chip. Nanometer refers to the size of transistors on the chip; the smaller the size, the more transistors can be fitted on a single chip, resulting in stronger chip performance.
Wang Chuanfu also announced that starting Thursday, for one year, new users of BYD’s assisted driving technologies, Tienshen Eye A and Tienshen Eye B, will enjoy a year-long insurance coverage from the date they receive the vehicle, fully covering any losses caused by related incidents.
BYD has already made Tienshen Eye a standard feature on most of its models since last year.