Nvidia has posted a job ad for its autonomous driving China team, led by former smart driving chief Wu Xinzhou.

(Image credit: Nvidia)

US chip giant Nvidia is expanding its autonomous driving team in China after a prominent industry veteran in the field joined it earlier this year.

Nvidia posted a job ad on November 28 to recruit talent for its autonomous driving China team, which is led by former Xpeng (NYSE: XPEV) smart driving chief Wu Xinzhou.

Open positions include Product Engineering, Data Curation, and Auto Labeling, with office locations in Beijing, Shanghai, and Shenzhen, according to the job ad.

The Nvidia Drive ecosystem includes hundreds of automakers, truck makers, shuttle companies, Tier 1 suppliers, sensor makers, software companies, mapping companies and startups, the company said.

Wu is Nvidia's head of autonomous driving and has experience in automotive research, the job ad reads.

China has the most suitable soil for high-level autonomous driving technology and has cultivated the world's best autonomous driving talent, Wu said, adding that he expects his team to build globalized autonomous driving products based on the talent and experience in China.

One of the most recognized talents in China's smart driving space, Wu joined Xpeng in March 2019 and has led the company to become one of China's most recognized names in autonomous driving technology in just a few years.

At Xpeng, he was responsible for overall autonomous driving technology road-mapping, business and team management, and reported to He Xiaopeng, the EV maker's chairman and CEO.

Wu left Xpeng in August to join Nvidia, and was replaced by Li Liyun, head of Xpeng's XNGP (Navigation Guided Pilot) program team.

On August 24, Mr. He shared a Weibo photo of him with Wu and Nvidia co-founder and CEO Jensen Huang.

"The next opportunity is at AIGC and AUTO, and our deeper collaboration is about to begin," Mr. He said at the time.

Xpeng pushed out its latest OTA update yesterday, expanding the coverage of its HD map-independent XNGP feature to an additional 20 cities, after it was already available in Beijing, Shanghai, Guangzhou, Shenzhen and Foshan.

Xpeng aims to have XNGP available in 50 cities by the end of the year, and to cover the road networks of major Chinese cities by 2024.

Xpeng rumored to be in talks with Nvidia for customized autonomous driving chip