- SAIC and Huawei have signed an agreement to collaborate in the areas of product definition, production, supply chain management, and sales and services.
- Previous reports said the two would create a new brand with the Chinese name Shangjie, targeting a younger demographic.
Shanghai-based SAIC Motor (SHA: 600104) has officially announced its partnership with Huawei, confirming previous rumors that they will build cars together.
SAIC and Huawei signed an in-depth cooperation agreement in Shanghai on February 21, according to a statement from the carmaker today.
The two sides will launch strategic cooperation in the areas of product definition, manufacturing, supply chain management, and sales and services to create intelligent new energy vehicles (NEVs) and jointly bring users a leading smart mobility experience, SAIC's statement said.
The signing was witnessed by Wang Xiaoqiu, chairman of SAIC, and Richard Yu, Huawei's managing director and chairman of intelligent vehicle solutions business unit. Jia Jianxu, president of SAIC, and Wang Yanmin, president of Huawei's Zhixuan business unit, signed on behalf of their respective companies.
Huawei, a leading global provider of ICT infrastructure and smart terminals, has worked with its partners in recent years to launch a number of outstanding smart car products that have been well received by the market, SAIC's statement noted.
Huawei has brought consumers a smart mobility experience in areas including smart driving, smart cockpit, and software-defined vehicles, the statement said.
The teams of the two sides will integrate deeply to jointly explore new paths of smart car technology innovation and business model innovation, and are committed to creating globally competitive smart car products, SAIC said.
SAIC's statement did not mention further details. Several reports have previously mentioned that the two companies would work together to create a new brand, targeting the younger market.
Huawei and SAIC would jointly create a new automotive brand, called Shangjie (尚界) in Chinese, which would be the fifth brand under Huawei's HIMA (Harmony Intelligent Mobility Alliance) business, according to local media outlet 36kr in a February 11 story.
Huawei and SAIC's new brand will target a younger market, with vehicles starting at around RMB 170,000 ($23,460) to RMB 250,000, 36kr said, citing a person familiar with the matter.
On February 17, another local media outlet, Yicai, reported that Shangjie's first model would be based on a model from SAIC's sub-brand Roewe, with a starting price in the RMB 150,000 yuan range.
All models from the new brand will be sold into HIMA's channels, according to Yicai.
Huawei has three ways of working with car companies, with the approach of launching a new brand being the one it is most involved in. The model was initially known as Zhixuan and was upgraded in November 2023 to HIMA.
In Huawei's least-involved model, the tech giant only provides components and the HarmonyOS system.
In the middle of the spectrum is the "Huawei Inside" model, where Huawei provides full-stack smart car solutions, including smart cockpits and smart driving, to automakers.
Under the HIMA business, Huawei and local automakers have jointly created four new brands -- Seres Group's Aito, Chery's Luxeed, BAIC Group's Stelato, and Anhui Jianghuai Automobile Group (JAC)'s Maextro.
The HIMA business currently has six models on sale -- Aito M5, Aito M7, Aito M9, Luxeed S7, Luxeed R7, Stelato S9.
($1 = RMB 7.2472)
Huawei, SAIC's 1st joint model to start at around $20,000, report says
More on Huawei
