China’s smart EV market closed September with three important signals at once: urban NOA installation volume in August rebounded to 427,000 units with penetration rising to a 2026 high of 27.9%; JAC Motors confirmed it has discussed a possible cooperation with Huawei and Stellantis, though no binding deal has been signed; and the 2027 Zongheng G700 launched in Beijing from RMB 304,900, blending Huawei driver-assistance tech with rugged off-road positioning. Taken together, the news shows how China’s EV battle is no longer only about electrification—it is increasingly about who can scale advanced driver assistance, who controls vehicle platforms, and which brands can turn technology into profitable, globally relevant products.
China’s urban NOA market is growing again—but the story is more complex
According to D1EV data, urban NOA installations reached 427,000 units in August, up 9.1% month on month, while penetration climbed to 27.9%, the highest level so far this year. That rebound matters because total installations had been hovering around the 400,000-unit mark since May, suggesting the market had entered a short-term plateau.
But the apparent stagnation in total volume masks a major structural shift.
From June to August, China’s passenger-car insurance registrations fell from 1.673 million to 1.529 million, a decline of 8.6%. In other words, the broader auto market softened, limiting headline NOA growth. Yet penetration still rose, meaning smart-driving adoption is expanding faster than the market itself.
August urban NOA leaderboard: a genuine three-way race
The biggest change came among third-party smart-driving suppliers. DeepRoute.ai (Yuanrong) overtook Momenta for second place in August, narrowing the gap with Huawei and turning the segment into a near dead heat.
| Supplier | August installations | Market share |
|---|---|---|
| Huawei | 68,600 | 16.0% |
| DeepRoute.ai | 62,100 | 14.5% |
| Momenta | 61,300 | 14.3% |
The spread between first and third was just 1.7 percentage points, a striking contrast with January, when Huawei held a much larger 24.4% share. Huawei still leads, but its advantage is clearly thinning as more automakers diversify smart-driving partnerships.
DeepRoute’s August gain was driven largely by new Great Wall Motor-related models, including:
- Haval H10: 7,024 units
- Tank 300L: 5,968 units
- Leapmotor D99: 2,532 units
This matters because it shows scale now depends less on one halo product and more on broad OEM integration across multiple vehicle lines.
Why self-developed players still make the biggest hits
Third-party suppliers collectively controlled the majority of August NOA volume. The seven major independent providers—Huawei, DeepRoute.ai, Momenta, Qianli Haohan, Horizon, Zhuoyu, and WeRide—accounted for 251,300 installations, or 58.7% of the market. Five vertically integrated automakers—Tesla, Li Auto, Xiaomi, NIO, and XPeng—delivered 177,000 units, or 41.3%.
Yet on a model-by-model basis, the balance flips.
If a “hit” model is defined as one with at least 5,000 monthly installations, both camps had 13 such models in August. But self-developed automakers generated far more volume per model:
| Camp | Hit models | Total installations from hit models | Average per model |
|---|---|---|---|
| Self-developed automakers | 13 | 156,000 | 12,000 |
| Third-party suppliers | 13 | 91,000 | 7,000 |
That gap highlights a core competitive truth in China’s EV market:
- Suppliers win by coverage across many brands and nameplates
- Automakers win by concentration around a few strong-selling products
Tesla is an obvious example, with the Model Y contributing 58% of its NOA-equipped volume. Xiaomi’s SU7 accounted for 55% of Xiaomi’s total, while one Li Auto model contributed 46% of the brand’s smart-driving installations.
By contrast, suppliers such as Momenta and DeepRoute.ai spread volume over many models. That broad footprint improves resilience, but it also makes it harder to sustain blockbuster products over time. D1EV’s data suggests that among suppliers, only Huawei and DeepRoute.ai are consistently creating repeat hit models.
The real growth engine is shifting downmarket
The most important strategic trend is not just who leads today—it is where future growth will come from.
Penetration by price band
| Vehicle price band | January penetration | August penetration | Key trend |
|---|---|---|---|
| Above RMB 200,000 | 40.2% | 60.8% | Mature, high penetration, fuel-car mix still falling |
| RMB 100,000-200,000 | 4.7% | 14.2% | Fastest mass-market growth battleground |
| Below RMB 100,000 | 0.04% | 3.6% | Just beginning, still highly fragmented |
Over RMB 200,000: still the NOA stronghold
This remains the main battlefield for urban NOA, where Tesla, Xiaomi, NIO, most of Huawei’s installations, 75% of Qianli Haohan’s volume, and 52% of Momenta’s volume are concentrated.
Despite a roughly 10% contraction in this price segment from June to August, penetration kept climbing, largely because internal-combustion vehicles are losing share. From January to August, fuel-car registrations in this band fell from 310,000 to 174,000, dropping their share from 53.8% to 33.3%.
The implication is straightforward: even if overall sales are flat or down, urban NOA penetration can rise as buyers switch from ICE vehicles to better-equipped NEVs. At the current pace, penetration above RMB 200,000 could approach 70% by year-end.
RMB 100,000-200,000: the next scale opportunity
This is now the most important expansion zone for advanced driver assistance in China. Installations in this bracket rose from 33,000 in January to 99,000 in August, while penetration nearly tripled.
Third-party suppliers drove almost all of that growth. D1EV attributes the biggest gains to:
- Momenta: +24,100 units
- DeepRoute.ai: +12,400 units
- Horizon: +7,200 units
- Qianli Haohan: +6,300 units
- Zhuoyu: +4,500 units
- WeRide: +3,100 units
Among self-developed players, only XPeng made a notable contribution, adding about 8,500 units.
This is a crucial indicator for the next phase of competition: premium smart driving is no longer confined to higher-end EVs. The brands and suppliers that can bring urban NOA into the middle of the market without crushing margins will be in the strongest position over the next 12 to 24 months.
Below RMB 100,000: still tiny, but no longer irrelevant
The sub-RMB 100,000 segment remains nascent, but August showed it is finally moving. Penetration rose from virtually zero in January to 3.6% in August, with installations reaching 10,400 units.
Almost all of that volume came from DeepRoute.ai, especially through:
- Leapmotor A10: 9,179 units
- Leapmotor A05: 1,177 units
This is still too small to redefine the market, but it is strategically important. Once urban NOA reaches true entry-level vehicles, China’s smart-driving stack could shift from a premium differentiator to a mass-market expectation.
JAC, Huawei and Stellantis: rumor, caution, and strategic logic
Against that backdrop, JAC Motors issued a stock-exchange filing after its shares surged on reports of a possible three-way cooperation with Huawei and Stellantis. JAC confirmed that the parties have held discussions and have an intention to cooperate, but stressed that:
- No binding formal agreement has been signed
- The structure and content of any cooperation remain undecided
- There is significant uncertainty over whether the project will move forward
The clarification followed a sharp stock move, with JAC logging three limit-up sessions in four trading days and reaching RMB 25.22 per share.
Reports circulating in Chinese and overseas media suggest the rumored project could involve Maserati, Stellantis’s luxury brand, using Huawei’s Harmony Intelligent Mobility Alliance ecosystem and JAC manufacturing capacity to build a new-energy SUV for production by late 2027. One version of the proposal describes a “dual-badge” strategy:
- Zunjie branding in China
- Maserati branding overseas
None of that is confirmed. But even as a rumor, it reveals how global incumbents may increasingly look to China for:
- EV platforms
- software-defined vehicle architectures
- advanced driver-assistance systems
- manufacturing speed and cost competitiveness
For Huawei, such a project would also fit a broader pattern: using its smart-cockpit and ADAS technologies to extend influence well beyond domestic Chinese nameplates.
Zongheng G700 launches with Huawei tech and off-road ambition
The third piece of news comes from Beijing’s Shougang Park, where the 2027 Zongheng G700 officially launched on September 29. Positioned as a luxury off-road SUV, the model starts at a promotional RMB 304,900 and comes in five trims, including a 260 km intelligent variant.
The G700 stands out because it combines traditional Chinese SUV strengths—rugged capability, large dimensions, and hybrid range—with an increasingly essential ingredient in this market: branded smart-driving technology.
Key G700 highlights
- Huawei Qiankun intelligent driving system
- CDM-O hybrid powertrain
- Integrated high-pressure body-on-frame structure
- Three locking differentials as standard
- XWD-S intelligent four-wheel-drive system
- CDC suspension + air suspension
- Zero-gravity seats
- Doubao large-model AI integration
- 20-speaker audio system
Zongheng also emphasized unusual “amphibious” capability claims, saying its Ark amphibious technology and top sailing variant have already been tested in events including a Yangtze River crossing and Minjiang rescue operations.
The company says the G700 has sold more than 30,000 units globally in 11 months, and that it has ranked as the top-selling Chinese luxury SUV in markets including Saudi Arabia, the UAE, and Mexico across eight countries.
Whether or not every marketing claim translates directly into sustainable long-term demand, the positioning is noteworthy. Chinese brands are no longer exporting only affordable EVs; they are increasingly trying to define new niches in premium hybrid off-roaders, smart SUVs, and lifestyle-led utility vehicles.
Comparison: what these three stories say about China’s EV industry
| Theme | NOA market data | JAC-Huawei-Stellantis talks | Zongheng G700 launch |
|---|---|---|---|
| Core message | Smart driving is scaling | Chinese EV tech is attracting global interest | Smart tech is now central even in off-road SUVs |
| Key players | Huawei, DeepRoute.ai, Momenta, Tesla, XPeng, Li Auto | JAC, Huawei, Stellantis, potentially Maserati | Zongheng, Huawei |
| Strategic takeaway | Mass-market ADAS is the next battleground | Cross-border tech alliances may deepen | Product differentiation now blends hardware, software and brand story |
Why this matters globally
For international readers, these are not isolated domestic Chinese news items. They point to three global consequences.
1. China is compressing the ADAS adoption cycle
In many markets, advanced urban driver assistance is still largely a premium feature. In China, it is already moving from vehicles above RMB 200,000 into the RMB 100,000-200,000 segment and beginning to enter sub-RMB 100,000 cars. That speed could force global automakers to rethink cost structures and feature roadmaps.
2. Supplier power is growing—but OEM product strength still matters more
Huawei, Momenta and DeepRoute.ai are becoming increasingly influential, yet the biggest “hit” vehicles still come from brands with strong control over product definition, software integration and marketing. In practical terms, ADAS alone is not enough; it must be packaged inside vehicles consumers actively want.
3. Chinese smart-vehicle ecosystems are becoming exportable
Whether through possible JAC-Huawei-Stellantis cooperation or products like the G700, China is demonstrating that its EV value chain can serve not just domestic brands, but potentially overseas luxury and mainstream players as well. Software, battery integration, hybrid systems and intelligent-driving stacks are becoming export products in their own right.
What to watch next
Several developments will shape the final quarter of the year and beyond:
- Can Huawei hold the top NOA position as DeepRoute.ai and Momenta close in?
- Will the RMB 100,000-200,000 segment become the decisive battleground for urban NOA scale?
- Can entry-level NOA become commercially viable without eroding profitability?
- Will JAC, Huawei and Stellantis turn exploratory talks into a real agreement?
- Can lifestyle-oriented SUVs like the Zongheng G700 translate launch momentum into sustained domestic and export sales?
The deeper theme is clear. China’s EV race is evolving into a software-and-scale contest: not simply who can build an electric car, but who can mainstream intelligent driving, create durable hit products, and convert domestic strength into global industrial influence.
