Mercedes-Benz is betting on China’s Momenta to assist it win again market share on this planet’s largest auto market, with plans for recent funding and not less than 4 future fashions to make use of the autonomous driving startup’s software program, three sources with information of the matter mentioned.
The plans, which haven’t been beforehand reported, will make autonomous-driving developer Momenta the primary Chinese language provider picked by Mercedes to be a main supplier of a key know-how and promoting level for its merchandise, as intense competitors and technological innovation in China drive Western automakers to rethink their supply-chain methods.
The German premium automaker has since 2017 had an funding in Momenta however the two firms have but to publicly announce collectively developed merchandise.
Within the years since, the Chinese language agency has emerged as certainly one of China’s main suppliers of superior driving assisted system (ADAS) options just like Tesla’s full self driving that may navigate city visitors with human drivers’ supervision.
Mercedes intends to make a recent $75-million funding in Momenta and should make investments extra as a cornerstone investor in Momenta’s preliminary public providing scheduled within the first quarter of 2025, the sources mentioned.
It has chosen Momenta as its ADAS provider in 4 fashions to be launched in China from 2025 to 2027 and is discussing internally whether or not to make use of Momenta software program in additional Chinese language fashions past 2027, one of many folks mentioned.
It’s also working with Momenta on preliminary plans to make use of the Chinese language provider’s know-how in Mercedes fashions exterior China, two of the folks mentioned.
Mercedes and Momenta declined to remark.
Mercedes has additionally been exploring ADAS choices with U.S. artificial-intelligence chipmaker Nvidia as a part of a partnership introduced in 2020, after they mentioned they’d develop Mercedes-Benz automobiles with upgradable automated-driving capabilities. Nonetheless, the corporations have but to unveil any merchandise.
BEHIND IN CHINA
Mercedes is enjoying catch-up in China on each electrical automobiles and smart-driving software program, which is led by Tesla, Nio and Xiaomi.
Solely 3% of Mercedes’ 443,764 automobiles offered in China this yr had been EVs, in response to the China Affiliation of Vehicle Producers, fewer than one-tenth of Nio’s gross sales.
Automakers in China are locked in an autonomous-driving race, with BYD hiring hundreds of engineers to ramp up its in-house growth of such software program. Nio, Xpeng and Xiaomi are growing their very own ADAS chips that would obtain higher smart-driving efficiency with their EVs.
The development has additionally helped Chinese language ADAS suppliers Momenta, Huawei and DeepRoute.ai shortly amass automaker shoppers and embed a number of automobile fashions inside their programs.
Momenta’s shoppers embrace BYD, SAIC and Audi in China. Momenta’s largest automaker investor is China’s SAIC whereas different backers embrace Common Motors and Toyota.
