Geo Mapping to Enable China’s Autonomous Driving Race

China has the ambitious goal of 10% to 20% autonomous vehicle penetration by 2030; with semi-autonomous vehicles for sale by 2021. The roadmap to full autonomy is supported through increased focus on geo-mapping technologies. Mapping contenders include NavInfo (which, along with Tencent and GIC, took a 10% share of HERE and created a Joint Venture (JV)) and AutoNavi (Alibaba US$1.5 billion acquisition in 2014), with at least 14 firms licensed to conduct geo-mapping in China. These leverage the BeiDou Navigation Satellite System (BDS), with 210,00 kilometers of China’s highways already mapped. BDS is the Chinese response to the U.S.-founded Global Positioning Satellite (GPS) system. The technology’s positioning services and devices equip more than 4 million taxis, long-haul buses, and cargo trucks. Since 2018, BDS has exceeded the number of GPS satellites (35 versus 31). It is expected to become global by 2020, with claims of performance to far exceed that of GPS.

AutoNavi has mapped more than 13 million points of interest across China. Its US$141 million annual revenue is on par with HERE technologies and TomTom International. Scale has grown considerably through partnerships with Geely, Cadillac/GM, and Daimler for their autonomous driving technologies. NavInfo, with 15 years of history in China, is also focused on international markets, including foreign investments and acquisitions. Daimler signed an 8-year contract to use NavInfo’s mapping for Advanced Driver Assistance Systems (ADAS) and Autonomous Vehicle (AV) technologies.

China’s entry to autonomy began in earnest with Baidu in 2017, through its Apollo platform for AVs. Baidu’s AV program has supported development for more than 100 autonomous buses to be released in early 2019 in Japan. Additionally. Baidu USA has partnered on a pilot in Los Angeles, California for autonomous access vehicles for the disabled. There are plans for Baidu to offer its autonomous technologies to other countries as well.

Startup Pony.ai increased its fleet of AVs and received its license in July to test on roads in Beijing. Chinese AI startup, Momenta, has been developing deep learning software with reactive abilities to High-Definition (HD) maps since 2016.

Commercial applications include Suning Logistics autonomous, Level 4 heavy-duty truck (Strolling Dragon) tests in Shanghai as part of its plans to completely automate logistics. Startup TuSimple continues to test its autonomous trucking technologies that boast a 1,000-meter detection distance (up to triple that of the competition). Ride-hailing giant Didi Chuxing, valued at US$56 billion, has demonstrated successful autonomous taxi hailing services in China and won recent approval for testing in California.

Daimler, Audi, Mercedes, and BMW obtained licenses to test AVs on Chinese roads after agreements to partner with local mapping or software companies, a requirement for foreign companies to enter Chinese autonomous driving markets. Since 2017, Bosch has partnered with AutoNavi and NavInfo for HD maps used for future autonomous driving tests.

NavInfo was recently commissioned to build an HD-map of Singapore for autonomous cars to be completed in 2019. It has also partnered with Mobileye to develop ADAS and automated driving solutions in China by integrating NavInfo’s HD map with Mobileye’s Road Experience Management (REM) technology.

The future of vehicle navigation technology for autonomous driving, at least in China, will not rely on GPS, as China develops and races ahead with its own technology. A growing list from startups to JVs/partnerships and industry giants will build, test, and evolve the building blocks that will enable the AV ecosystem. China is becoming a key geography for success and geo mapping, made possible via highly accurate satellite systems, will enable successful autonomy.