Shanghai auto show: EVs take center stage, nearly 40 models equipped with LiDARs

There are 38 models equipped with LiDARs, of which BYD-backed RoboSense is the biggest winner, being the supplier of 18 of them.

At the Shanghai auto show two years ago, Xpeng's P5 sedan attracted a lot of attention as the world's first LiDAR-equipped production car at the time.

Now, at the latest Shanghai auto show, the number of electric vehicles (EVs) powered by LiDARs has reached dozens, as local EV makers have adopted the component over the past two years to help make vehicles more capable of assisted driving.

The ongoing Shanghai auto show began on April 18 and will run through April 27. EVs are certainly the focus of attention, with traditional fuel vehicles having fallen out of favor, a drastic change from two years ago.

More than 1,500 vehicles are on display at this year's edition of the show, with more than 150 of them making their debut, according to figures released by the event's organizers.

About two-thirds of those debuts were NEVs, including battery electric vehicles and plug-in hybrids.

Dozens of the NEVs at the show use the same new technology -- LiDARs -- despite the vehicles coming from different brands and having different designs.

Of all the models on display at the Shanghai auto show, 38 were equipped with LiDARs, with BYD-backed RoboSense, founded in 2014, being the biggest winner and the supplier for 18 of them.

Among BYD's models, the high-end Yangwang U8 off-road SUV and Denza N7 SUV are equipped with RoboSense's M Series LiDARs.

Xpeng G6, which debuted at the Shanghai auto show, and the company's two flagship models, the P7i sedan and the G9 SUV, are also equipped with RoboSense's M Series LiDARs.

On April 14, 2021, Xpeng unveiled the P5, the world's first LiDAR-equipped production car, on the eve of the last Shanghai auto show.

Notably, the P5 used LiDAR provided by Livox, incubated by drone maker DJI. However, Xpeng switched to RoboSense's LiDARs for all subsequent models.

AITO, the EV brand jointly created by Huawei and Seres Group, also uses RoboSense's M Series LiDAR in the M5 SUV. Among other high-profile models, the Lotus Eletre, GAC Aion Hyper GT, Arcfox α-S with " Huawei Inside" are also equipped with RoboSense's LiDARs.

In addition to RoboSense, Innovusion and Hesai are the other two major players.

Among the vehicles on display at the Shanghai auto show, six Nio models -- the new ES8, ES7, new ES6, EC7, ET7 and ET5 -- are equipped with Innovusion's Falcon LiDARs.

Innovusion had a booth at the show and used an ET7 as a vehicle to showcase its product.

Li Auto (NASDAQ: LI) currently has three models on sale -- Li L7, Li L8 and Li L9 -- all equipped with Hesai's AT128 LiDARs. HiPhi's HiPhi Z and HiPhi Y are also equipped with the component from Hesai.

For smart driving, vehicles need to detect their surroundings, and a single type of sensor often encounters scenarios that are not covered by its capabilities, a RoboSense source told CnEVPost.

The addition of LiDAR makes up for the weaknesses of other sensors, thus making the perception system capability more comprehensive and the smart driving decisions safer and more reasonable, the source said.

RoboSense flexes muscles at Tech Day, unveils new solid-state LiDAR and dedicated lab for testing

LiDAR suppliers for models at Shanghai auto show.xlsx

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