Author | Cao Anxun
Editor | Zhou Zhiyu
After leveraging new energy to achieve a record high in production and sales of its own brands in 2023, the GAC Group continued to release a series of new technologies.
On April 12, 2024 GAC Technology Day, GAC launched the first domestic autonomous driving system with no image and pure vision — the Garcia Smart Driving System and an all-solid-state power battery. Both technologies are scheduled to be installed in 2026, and are the first to be installed in Haobo models.
These two technologies are also the technological peak currently being contested by car companies. GAC is trying to use this to emphasize its technological leadership to the outside world in order to gain consumer recognition.
Feng Xingya, general manager of GAC Group, explained that the Garcia smart driving system does not require high-precision maps or lidar. Through the ability to accurately understand complex traffic roads, traffic light recognition ability, and ability to handle complex and variable scenes, etc., it has basically achieved high-speed and urban NDA functions in Guangzhou's core urban area.
By the time it is loaded in the spring of 2026, GAC will also become the first domestic car company to use picture-free visual autonomous driving technology.
In addition, GAC has also achieved key technological breakthroughs in all-solid-state batteries.
The energy density of GAC's all-solid-state battery has reached more than 400Wh/kg. Compared with the most advanced liquid lithium-ion batteries, the volumetric energy density has increased by more than 40%, the mass energy density has increased by more than 30%, and the vehicle's battery life can exceed 1000 km.
The event also showcased various technologies such as electromagnetic suspension, mLounge Qizhi First Class, mBoard 2.0 Qi Smart chassis, and flying cars.
It is worth mentioning that GAC's new energy star Aian is joining forces with Didi Autonomous Driving to enter the Robotaxi Blue Ocean market. The joint venture Guangzhou Andi Technology was granted an industrial and commercial license on April 7.
Andi Technology plans to mass-produce the first batch of L4 class autonomous taxis in 2025.
This means that with the entry of AEON, the commercialization process of L4 autonomous driving in the industry is accelerating, which is expected to help GAC move further towards the goal of “trillion GAC” and a “world-class technology enterprise.”
Behind intensive scientific research and innovation and showing technical strength to the outside world, GAC wants to win recognition from consumers and investors by emphasizing its technical strength, especially its own brand Aian.
In March, AEON achieved sales volume of 32,530 vehicles, up 95.1% from the previous month and down 18.7% from the previous year. In the first quarter, AEON sold a cumulative total of 74,135 vehicles, a year-on-year decrease of 5.3%.
Being in an increasingly internal market and in the most competitive price range, Aian began a sales defense war in 2024 to maintain its status as a car builder and improve valuations.
According to the Ping An Securities Research Report, the growth rate of leading NEV companies will be under pressure in 2024, and the price war dominated by leading NEV companies will continue, especially in the mainstream price range of 100,000 yuan to 200,000 yuan.
To this end, in recent months, AEON has intensively boosted sales by reducing prices and speeding up the introduction of new technology.
On the one hand, the Aion brand cut prices for models such as the AION V Plus 80 MAX and AION S MAX Xinghan, and also launched the AION Y Plus Starlight Edition, which sold at as low as 99,800 yuan; on the other hand, the Haobo brand strengthened the Haobo brand. After achieving a complete separation between Aian and Haobo from sales channels to public relations, in February, the Haobo GT Advanced Smart Driving 3L Edition was launched, leading the way into the L3 autonomous driving era and became a technology leader in the industry.
After an extremely internal crisis in 2023, GAC and Aian, which carried its new energy banner, faced a new Red Sea where players such as BYD, Wanjie, Ideal, Zero Run, and Xiaomi competed for supremacy.
This is a battle where you don't advance or retreat. Chery Chairman Yin Tongyue believes that only 5 NEV companies may survive in the future. Yu Chengdong, executive director of Huawei, stated that “there will be no more than 5 major players in Chinese cars in the future.”
If they want to become a surviving minority, car companies need to break through in fields such as self-developed core technology, supply chain investment, and overseas travel. GAC is no exception.