Shanghai (ZXZC)- On March 25, Chinese automaker BYD signed a strategic cooperation agreement with Huawei, a Chinese multinational provider of ICT infrastructure and smart devices, to co-boost the innovation of automobile and rail transit, and digital transformation of automotive industry.

Under the agreement, both parties are ready to carry out in-depth exchange and cooperation in such areas as automobile intelligent connectivity, autonomous driving, smart monorail and smart industrial park. Huawei will exercise its technology advantages in AI, 5G, Internet of Things (IoT), cloud computing and big data to intelligentize and upgrade the mobility service industry and promote companies’ digital transformation by teaming up with BYD, who boasts rich technical resources of NEV and rail transit.

Huawei revealed that the eLTE-based autonomous driving system co-developed by Huawei and BYD has been applied in the monorail system running in Yinchuan, the capital of the Ningxia Hui Autonomous Region. The latest cooperation upgrade will allow BYD to integrate Huawei's eLTE Huawei's ground-to-train wireless private network communications solution into its SkyRail.

Traditional automakers forming partnership with Internet giants and communications companies has gradually become an industrial trend. For instance, SAIC Motor and Alibaba Group joined hands as early as 2014 to build China's first “Internet car”. In last April, Changan Automobile and Tencent agreed a cooperation deal in Internet of Vehicles (IoV), big data and cloud computing fields. Ford Motor (China) Ltd. and Baidu inked a strategic letter of intent on June 27, 2018 to extend in-depth cooperation in such areas as IoV, digital solutions, AI technologies and digital marketing.