Decisive Battle for Smart Cockpits: Tencent Joins, Joint Ventures Strike Back—What Will Drive This Trillion-Yuan Market?

According to data from Gaogong Intelligent Vehicle Research Institute, in Q2 2025, the penetration rate of smart cockpits in China’s OEM market reached 52.3%, with the global market size surpassing 450 billion RMB. This means that one out of every two new cars now comes equipped with “human-like interaction” capabilities. In this trillion-level battlefield, explosive technologies, policy guidance, and ecosystem rivalry are reshaping the rules of the game.

1. Technology Boom: AI Models Reshape Human-Vehicle Interaction

When Tencent TAI 6.0, powered by an “end-cloud integration” architecture, ushered cockpit interaction into the era of “what you think is what you get,” traditional automakers’ moats began to collapse. Its Hunyuan large model achieved breakthroughs with 97.5% vehicle signal interpretation accuracy and 98% external environment perception, enabling scenarios such as: “Say you want to go camping, and the vehicle automatically plans the route, books the campsite, and adjusts the seats.”    

This is not just a technological victory—it is a battle for ecosystem discourse power. Volkswagen and Horizon Robotics are co-developing cockpit-driving fusion chips, Toyota has introduced Pony.ai’s emotional computing engine, and global giants are leveraging “Chinese technology” to reclaim market ground. 

Even more radical changes are happening at the underlying level: NVIDIA’s Thor chip has surpassed 2000 TOPS, enabling cockpit-driving integration; BOE’s flexible display production costs have dropped by 45%, making AR-HUD available in 150,000 RMB models; and SenseTime’s emotion engine can now detect seven micro-expressions, supporting scenarios such as “playing soothing music when the user’s heart rate accelerates.” This AI-driven explosion is redefining the smart cockpit value chain!

2. Market Reshuffle: Three Forces Compete for the High Ground

China’s smart cockpit market has split into three clear camps:

• Tech giants such as Huawei’s HarmonyOS (over 4 million installations) and Tencent TAI (with five intelligent ecosystems) are building open platforms, using cross-terminal synergy across “smartphone–car–home” to divide the market.

• Domestic automakers like BYD with its self-developed “Eye of God” system and Geely with its “Galaxy OS” 3D vehicle control, are embedding hardware to seize control of user data sovereignty.

• Joint ventures are caught in a dilemma: Volkswagen’s ID.7 carries the China-developed Lingxi Cockpit, Honda’s e:N series integrates Baidu Apollo, but core algorithms remain dependent on others.

Gaogong data shows that in Q2 2025, smart cockpit penetration reached 52.3%, with multi-modal interaction adoption exceeding 45%. A looming concern: Tesla’s FSD V12, through end-to-end autonomous driving, is back-penetrating the cockpit. Its Dojo supercomputer has trained a “driver simulator” capable of predicting 95% of human driving intentions.

3. Policy Guidance: China’s Unique Balance of Innovation

The Automotive Data Security Regulation, implemented in July 2025, hides critical industry codes:

• Biometric data must be encrypted and stored domestically, with biometric identifiers classified as “top secret.”

• DMS systems must withstand extreme 85℃/85% humidity for 96 hours, eliminating 70% of low-end suppliers.

• Shenzhen’s L3 pilot program enforces full liability on automakers in accidents, pushing companies to adopt dual backup architectures for car-cloud redundancy.

Behind these policy red lines is the State Council’s accelerated “AI+” initiative, setting a goal for AI integration in intelligent connected vehicles to exceed 70% by 2027. This means that whoever first achieves the triangular balance of cockpit-driving integration, emotional interaction, and data compliance will win entry into the trillion-yuan market!

4. Ecosystem Warfare: From Point Breakthroughs to System Operations

The focus of industry competition has shifted from hardware specs to ecosystem synergy. Li Auto’s “scenario engine” illustrates this future direction:

• Biological perception: DMS+OMS fusion to monitor passengers; automatically adjusting seats and fragrances for pregnant passengers.

• Cross-domain coordination: Detecting children’s forgotten belongings, linking to mobile notifications, and scheduling home delivery.

• Emotional computing: SenseTime’s engine analyzes seven emotional states, adjusting window transparency according to heart rate.

Such deeply scenario-driven capabilities demand precision across the entire industry chain: Qualcomm’s Snapdragon 8295 provides computing foundations; Horizon’s Journey 6 integrates driving and parking; CATL’s integrated light-storage-charging-inspection stations deliver real-time energy data to cockpits. No single company can dominate it all—ecosystem co-construction is the key to breakthrough.

5. Ecosystem Partner Program: Seizing Collaborative Heights

As the industry enters the stage of “ecosystem supremacy,” one thing is clear: the winners of this battle will dictate mobility rules for the next decade.

The China Association of Plant Engineering (CAPE) New Energy Vehicle Industry Development Promotion Center has launched the Smart Cockpit Ecosystem Partner Program, a four-level empowerment system of standards and capability building—aimed at creating the strongest collaborative ecosystem in the smart cockpit industry.

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