China endeavors to strengthen auto chip, software capabilities in 14th five-year plan: MIIT

Shanghai (Gasgoo)- In the 14th five-year plan period (2021-2025), China will work harder to strengthen traditional areas of weakness such as software and the core technologies and materials related to automotive chips, Guo Shougang, deputy director of the Equipment Industry Department I of China's Ministry of Industry and Information Technology, said on June 18 at the 2021 China Auto Forum.

Guo Shougang, deputy director of the Equipment Industry Department I of China's Ministry of Industry and Information Technology; photo credit: 2021 China Auto Forum

Meanwhile, the country will also move faster on making breakthroughs in emerging industries like high-safety power battery, highly efficient electric drive system, basic computing platform, and operating system, according to Mr. Guo's speech.

Another mission Chinese auto industry assumes for the 2021-2025 period is to speed up its transition to electrification, connectivity, and intelligence. To achieve this goal, China will make greater efforts to construct the infrastructures for EV charging, battery swapping, hydrogen refueling, and LTE-V2X communications, make vehicles fully electrified in public service areas, improve relevant policies to further facilitate the use of NEVs (new energy vehicles), and boost the demonstration of ICV (intelligent-connected vehicle) testing, said Mr. Guo.

To provide a better environment for industrial development, China will deepen the reforms to streamline administration and delegate power, improve regulation, and upgrade services in car production field, orderly remove caps on contract manufacturing, and intensify the regulation on product safety, cybersecurity, and data safety, according to Guo.

He noted that Chinese auto industry is in an important period of strategic opportunities. China has reaped early-mover advantages in auto electrification, and its edge in information and communications technologies can greatly benefit the development of auto connectivity and intelligence. However, challenges have also changed due to the counter-current globalization, rising instabilities and uncertainties in industrial development, and fiercer market competition.

In the era of software defined vehicle, China should develop its own unified, open-source operating system for smart vehicles, as well as an independent and controllable industrial system for automotive-grade chips, Miao Wei, former minister of the MIIT, said at the forum.

Meanwhile, Mr. Miao also suggested that China should foster world-class companies for the development of semiconductors and integrated circuits. The firms from industries like transportation, electronic communications, Internet, and automobile should join hands to promote the strategic development of the 5G V2X-enabled intelligent-connected vehicles.