Gasgoo Munich- On July 1, 2026, AutoChips, a subsidiary of NavInfo, took center stage at the Munich Shanghai Electronic Fair. Under the banner "Exploring the Chip Realm, Leading the Chip Future," the company highlighted its latest strides in exporting smart cockpit SoCs, achieving breakthroughs with high-safety MCUs, and deploying solutions across diverse application scenarios.
The showcase comes against a backdrop of aggressive global expansion by China's auto industry. According to the China Association of Automobile Manufacturers, full vehicle exports hit 4.059 million units in the first half of 2026 — a 63% surge from a year earlier. Industry forecasts suggest the full-year tally could breach the 10 million mark. That scale is rippling up the supply chain, where the smart cockpit has emerged as a critical arena for building brand differentiation abroad.
Cockpit SoC: From Local Supply to Global Delivery
AutoChips put the spotlight on two cockpit chips at the fair: the AC8015 and AC8025. Positioned as an entry-level solution, the AC8015 handles multi-screen setups, infotainment systems, AR-HUDs, and digital clusters. Since mass production began, pre-installed shipments have topped 5 million units. The chip has partnered with over 90% of domestic OEMs, with more than half of that volume going to export markets. Meanwhile, the AC8025 targets mid-tier cockpit domain controllers, supporting domain control, IVI, and rear-seat entertainment screens; it has secured design wins from nearly 20 automakers.
In terms of positioning, AutoChips's strategy emphasizes "practicality." The company has built systemic capabilities in full-spectrum compliance, software-hardware platform design, and integrated cost reduction. This helps automakers looking abroad cut the costs of adapting and developing cockpit platforms across different overseas markets.
Image Source: AutoChips
The integration of Large Language Models (LLMs) into vehicles is reshaping computing requirements for cockpit chips. According to AutoChips, current mainstream platforms like the 8155 possess limited NPU power, and even the 8295 has constraints — typically requiring an external AI Box to handle LLMs. AutoChips is now planning its next-generation 8035 chip, aiming to integrate the cockpit and large models onto a single SoC; the chip is currently in the research and development phase.
Regarding market potential, data from the China Commercial Industry Research Institute shows the domestic automotive-grade SoC market reached 38.1 billion yuan in 2024, growing to 53.6 billion yuan in 2025, and is projected to hit 64.3 billion yuan in 2026.
MCU "Breaking Upward": AC7870x Earns ASIL-D Certification
If the cockpit SoC demonstrates AutoChips's market penetration, its MCU lineup reflects its accumulated technical depth.
Today, automotive electronic and electrical (E/E) architectures are shifting from distributed ECUs toward domain and zone controllers. That transition demands higher functional safety standards, better software ecosystem adaptation, and robust system-level development capabilities from automotive-grade MCUs. It is against this backdrop that the AC7870x series has emerged as a centerpiece of the exhibition.
On the technical front, the AC7870x houses six ARM Cortex-R52 cores running at 360MHz, supporting multi-core lockstep and Hypervisor technology. It includes a Hardware Security Module (HSM) meeting SM2/3/4 standards, along with large-capacity Flash memory and rich peripheral interfaces. Adapting to the mainstream AUTOSAR ecosystem, the chip is designed for high-safety scenarios like powertrain domains, chassis domains, zone controllers, and central domain control.
In May 2026, the AC7870x series passed German TÜV Rheinland's ISO 26262 ASIL-D functional safety product certification. This confirms the product meets the automotive industry's highest safety application standards, qualifying AutoChips to enter high-safety markets like powertrain and chassis control.
AutoChips has built a comprehensive MCU portfolio spanning the AC780x, AC784x, and AC7870x series. Notably, the AC7840 series passed the national automotive chip certification review in June 2026, with three chips successfully clearing the "Automotive Chip Certification Review Technical System." Launched by the State Administration for Market Regulation in 2024 and updated to version 2.0 in November 2025, this framework establishes certification standards covering nine modules and 60 indicators across five new energy vehicle domains and ten types of automotive chips.
In terms of market penetration, the AC7840 series has achieved mass deployment in scenarios ranging from wireless charging and T-BOXes to digital keys, body control, seat control, lighting, and thermal management. The automotive wireless charging sector, in particular, relies on the AC7840 as a primary platform, where it holds a domestic market share exceeding 30%. Overall, AutoChips's MCUs have reached mass production in more than a dozen scenarios.
The domestic automotive-grade MCU market remains in the early stages of localization. Industry data indicates the localization rate for these chips rose to approximately 18% in 2025. Globally, the market surpassed $8.5 billion in 2025, while China's market is projected to reach 30.9 billion yuan in 2026.
Conclusion
Viewed through the lens of this exhibition, AutoChips's product strategy follows two clear tracks. On the SoC side, the AC8015 and AC8025 continue to serve the globalization needs of Chinese automakers. On the MCU front, the AC7870x's ASIL-D certification marks a push into high-safety scenarios like powertrain and chassis domains.
AutoChips is among the few automotive-grade chip companies in China developing both SoC and MCU product lines, with cumulative shipments across its full series exceeding 300 million units. Industry forecasts suggest the market share of domestic automotive chips in China will rise to 35% in 2026. For AutoChips and its peers, the long-term challenge lies in balancing the "breadth" of SoCs with the "depth" of MCUs.
