China’s EV race: Great Wall Motor-backed start-up Haomo unveils 3 new ‘low-cost’ L2 autonomous driving systems

Haomo.AI, an autonomous driving technology start-up backed by Great Wall Motor, is to offer carmakers three new driver-assistance systems it claims are cheaper and better than existing ones in what could mark a step forward in China’s push to revolutionise mobility.

The Beijing-based company said its new products will cost vehicle assemblers as little as 3,000 yuan (US$411) apiece, significantly less than many comparable self-driving systems in the market. They are capable of Level 2 (L2) autonomy which, according to SAE, a global standardisation body, provides assistance to the driver but requires active supervision.

“We hope to provide our clients with low-cost [autonomous driving] solutions,” Haomo’s chairman, Zhang Kai, said on Wednesday at an event to launch the new “Hpilot” systems. “These three newly released second-generation Hpilot passenger car ADS (advanced driving assistance system) products are lower in price but higher in performance compared with previous ones.”

China has yet to approve L3 autonomous driving, which does not require hands on the steering wheel and allows drivers to safely take their attention off the road in certain traffic conditions.