ZTE's logic for making cars: cars are smartphones on four wheels

Another heavyweight company has joined the car-making trend.

On December 19, ZTE Corporation disclosed that in July this year, the company successfully acquired Zhuhai Guangtong Bus and established ZTE Smart Automobile Co., Ltd. to enter the new energy vehicle field. It will create a new industrial sector around the research and development, design, production and manufacturing of new energy vehicles, Internet of Vehicles applications, big data, autonomous driving, and system research and development and construction and operation of cloud computing centers.

On December 20, a person related to ZTE Smart Car told reporters that ZTE acquired 70% of the shares of Zhuhai Guangtong Bus and established ZTE's smart car team on this basis. "The amount is not convenient to disclose, but it is several hundred million yuan. We are recruiting talents, and smart cars will be a very important business of ZTE in the future."

According to the above-mentioned person, ZTE New Energy Automobile Co., Ltd. focuses on wireless charging technology and is a sister company of ZTE Intelligent Automobile Co., Ltd. ZTE is already very mature in wireless charging technology and will use wireless charging technology in ZTE's cars in the future.

According to the reporter, the ZTE smart car team is headquartered in Zhuhai, and the operator is Tian Wenguo, executive vice president of ZTE. After acquiring Guangtong Bus, Zhuhai approved 1,200 acres of industrial land for ZTE. The entire base will be built in two phases; the first phase will have a production capacity of 10,000 new energy vehicles and 20,000 other commercial buses by the end of next year.

"Gree invested in Yinlong before, but after it failed, Dong Mingzhu invested in Yinlong herself. LeTV was also making cars before. It should be said that everyone has seen this trend. ZTE's leadership has also seen this trend and hopes to find opportunities in this field." said the above-mentioned person related to ZTE Smart Car.

News about ZTE's car manufacturing was leaked at the Smart Transportation Innovation and Development Forum and 2016 Shenzhen Smart Transportation Lecture Hall held at the China Hi-Tech Fair on November 17 this year.

Talking about ZTE's logic for entering the new energy vehicle industry, Tian Feng, deputy general manager of ZTE New Energy Vehicle Co., Ltd., said, "We believe that cars are more like smartphones with four wheels. This is our perspective. The transportation system will be integrated into smart cities, smart transportation, the Internet of Things, including big data and cloud computing, and will be seamlessly integrated. From this perspective, ZTE's logic for entering the new energy vehicle industry is very strong." He said that the entire market's expectations for cars, including elements of user experience, have undergone a major change, and more is being said about how the Internet, artificial intelligence, IT and cars are combined.

Tian Feng also told the media: "ZTE is not just following the trend to build cars. On the one hand, after more than a hundred years of development, many automotive technologies have become relatively mature; on the other hand, the user experience of future cars will depend more on human-machine interaction. ZTE has advantages in IT, networks, and Internet of Vehicles systems. Guangtong Bus has solved the problem of how to build cars, and ZTE needs to solve the problems of electrification and intelligence."

It is reported that Hou Weigui, the former chairman of ZTE, supports ZTE's car-making plan. In 2015, Hou Weigui led a team to inspect many car factories for the purpose of technical cooperation or mergers and acquisitions. After many rounds of screening, Hou Weigui outlined the scope of car factories to be acquired, and Guangtong Bus was one of them. In an interview with local media in Zhuhai, Hou Weigui said that smart cars are the second key industry promoted by ZTE.

On December 19, ZTE Corporation said in an official statement that ZTE Smart Car currently has a number of independently developed and manufactured models, including luxury buses, double-decker buses, 12-meter tourist buses, intercity buses, and all-aluminum body buses. Its bus products are exported to many countries and regions including Germany, the Netherlands, Australia, Italy, Israel, Thailand, Vietnam, Hong Kong and Macau.

"ZTE's smart car project will integrate high-quality channel resources, deepen exchanges and cooperation on new technologies in the industry, continue to expand its internationally leading advantages in vehicle manufacturing processes and wireless charging core technologies, and provide global cities with overall smart transportation solutions and services based on the Internet of Things and 5G communication technologies." ZTE said in a statement.

As a winner of Toutiao's Qingyun Plan and Baijiahao's Bai+ Plan, the 2019 Baidu Digital Author of the Year, the Baijiahao's Most Popular Author in the Technology Field, the 2019 Sogou Technology and Culture Author, and the 2021 Baijiahao Quarterly Influential Creator, he has won many awards, including the 2013 Sohu Best Industry Media Person, the 2015 China New Media Entrepreneurship Competition Beijing Third Place, the 2015 Guangmang Experience Award, the 2015 China New Media Entrepreneurship Competition Finals Third Place, and the 2018 Baidu Dynamic Annual Powerful Celebrity.