Several car companies, including Li Auto, Geely, WM Motor, Zeekr, and BYD, participated in the first preparatory meeting.
(Image credit: Unsplash)
A state-backed think tank is leading the effort to establish an open-source community for China's automotive industry, as software becomes increasingly important for cars.
To explore mainstream open-source technologies for the automotive industry and create an open-source governance exchange platform, the China Academy of Information and Communications (CAICT) is leading preparations for an open-source community for the automotive industry, according to an announcement made by the think tank today.
The first preparatory meeting for the community was held on February 25, and its establishment system, organizational structure and launch ceremony were discussed, the CAICT said.
Several car companies and other organizations, including Li Auto, Great Wall Motor, Geely, WM Motor, Zeekr, and BYD, attended the meeting.
The use of open-source software in the automotive industry has become the norm and has become a strategy for some companies in recent years as open-source technology has become a major route in several emerging areas, the CAICT said.
The use of open-source software can reduce procurement costs, and their fast iteration can keep technology in the automotive industry up to date, according to the announcement.
It's also increasingly important to communicate about how to govern the open-source supply chain, ensure open-source software compliance, security and stability, and get players in the industry to communicate, the CAICT said.
The automotive industry has a high degree of overlap in the application of open-source technologies, but currently lacks a governance and communication platform, and the community will be established to address these issues, according to the announcement.
Since the community is still in the preparatory stage, it's not clear what areas of software it will cover.
The community will fully respect the wishes of its members, provide a platform for the exchange of open-source technology applications, and run the community on a project basis, the CAICT said.
Community members can discuss the use of open-source technologies in the automotive industry, create a good open-source ecology, and help the automotive industry reduce open-source risks, the announcement said.
The CAICT is inviting more participants to join, and those interested can sign up by April 1, 2022.
Analysts expect software to bring sustained revenue for XPeng
