China Takes Steps Towards Self-Reliance in Automotive-Grade Chips
On October 17, the Chinese State Administration for Market Regulation convened a conference aimed at promoting the industrialization and quality enhancement of domestic automotive-grade chips. During the conference, the first list of domestic automotive-grade chip certification review companies was officially unveiled, along with the release of version 1.0 of the automotive-grade chip certification system.
Despite Chinese cars accounting for 67% of the world’s new energy vehicle sales from January to August, the country’s self-sufficiency rate in automotive-grade chips stands at only about 10%, leading to a heavy reliance on imports. In 2023, over 90% of chips used in China’s automotive industry were imported, with a staggering 99% dependence on computing chips and 92% on memory chips.
China’s overreliance on foreign countries for Electronic Design Automation (EDA) software and Semiconductor Intellectual Property (IP) Core in chip design is a concerning issue. According to Luo Daojun, deputy director of the Components and Materials Research Institute of the Fifth Institute of Electronics of the Chinese MIIT, 95% of IP cores and 96% of EDA-related intellectual property rights are controlled by American and European companies.
To address this gap, the Chinese MIIT issued the “Key Points for Automobile Standardization in 2024” in June, aiming to accelerate the development of standards for automotive-grade chip reliability and information security. The initiative also includes the formulation of standards for technical requirements and test methods for various types of automotive chips.
In addition to Chinese automotive-grade chip manufacturers, leading automakers such as SAIC, Geely, Great Wall Motor, BYD, Nio, Li Auto, and Xpeng are actively investing in or developing their automotive-grade chips. SAIC, for instance, announced a significant investment in the semiconductor supply chain and key chip technologies driven by automotive intelligence, electrification, and networking.
Several automakers, including GAC, FAW, XPeng, Deepal, and Li Auto, have opted to establish joint ventures with chip manufacturers to enhance chip development capabilities. For example, GAC and CRRC Times jointly established Guangzhou Qinglan, focusing on the research and development of insulated-gate bipolar transistors (IGBT) for new energy vehicles.
By the end of 2024, China’s automotive-grade chip market is projected to reach 90.54 billion yuan (12.75 billion USD), marking a year-on-year increase of 6.5%, according to askci Corporation. As the Chinese automotive industry transitions towards a new era of intelligence, the role of chips in driving technological innovation in vehicles is becoming increasingly crucial.
Sources: East Money, OfWeek, Epoch Times, ChinaEV100, Sohu
