The outgoing Wang Yilun is mainly responsible for AI algorithm development work including smart driving perception and mapping at Li Auto, according to local media.
(Image credit: Li Auto)
Li Auto's head of smart driving AI algorithms and chief AI scientist Wang Yilun will leave the company in the near future, local media 36kr reported today, citing sources familiar with the matter.
Wang was mainly responsible for AI algorithm development work including smart driving perception and maps at Li Auto, reporting to Lang Xianpeng, the company's vice president of smart driving, according to the report.
He may start a business after leaving, but it is still in a job handover and is expected to leave at the end of the month, the report said, adding that an industry source said Li Auto is looking for an algorithm VP to take over Wang's job.
Wang, who graduated from Stanford University with a degree in computer science and was a senior expert in Huawei's automotive business unit, joined Li Auto in December 2020.
His departure may be related to too much pressure on R&D. Li Auto's self-driving team is half the size of Xpeng Motors, but CEO Li Xiang's expansion has been at a conservative pace, the report said, citing people familiar with the matter.
Li had said it was normal for the company's employees to work until 12 am, especially the self-driving team, most of whom work on Saturdays and Sundays, according to 36kr.
Wang has also said that after he joined Li Auto, work became almost all of his life, requiring him to face intense overtime, according to the report.
Li Auto delivered 11,531 vehicles in September, with its flagship SUV Li L9 surpassing 10,000 in volume in its first full delivery month, according to data released earlier this month.
That includes 10,123 Li L9s, and 1,408 Li ONEs. Li Auto officially launched the Li L9 on June 21, and its deliveries began on August 30.
On September 30, the company officially launched the new SUV Li L8, which offers AD Pro and AD Max options for assisted driving systems.
AD Pro is the world's first intelligent driving system equipped with local chip maker Horizon Robotics Journey 5 chip with 128 TOPS of arithmetic power on a single section of the chip, according to Li Auto.
AD Pro is equipped with 1 x 8MP front view camera, 5 x 2MP perimeter view cameras, and 4 x 2MP surround view cameras.
The AD Max intelligent driving system uses 2 NVIDIA Orin X chips with a total computing power of 508 TOPS.
AD Max is equipped with high-performance sensing sensors, including one AT128 LiDAR supplied by Hesai Technology, six 8-megapixel cameras, five 2-megapixel cameras, and an independent high-precision positioning module.
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