ZEEKR, Waymo’s cooperative self-driving BEV model debuts in U.S.

Shanghai (Gasgoo)- Geely Holding's premium electric vehicle (EV) brand, ZEEKR, announced via its WeChat the self-driving all-electric vehicle model it co-developed with Waymo made its official debut on Nov. 17 in Los Angeles, the U.S.

The cooperative model is built on the basis of the ZEEKR M-Vision, which will be prepared for volume production in 2024, the EV maker said.

The latest model premiere marks a significant advancement for the cooperation ZEEKR and Waymo formed in December 2021. Per the agreement, both parties would collaborate on the development of a new battery-electric vehicle (BEV) for deployment in the Waymo One autonomous ride-hailing fleet in the U.S. The model rides on ZEEKR's SEA-M architecture.

SEA-M; photo credit: ZEEKR

ZEEKR claimed the SEA-M as the world's first BEV architecture specifically designed for self-driving mobility service, boasting an exceptional expansibility available for a wide wheelbase range of 2,700mm to 3,300mm and diverse seating arrangements. The architecture has access to Level 4 and higher levels of autonomous driving systems, and is compatible with various autonomous driving technology solutions.

M-Vision; photo credit: ZEEKR

The ZEEKR M-Vision is jointly designed by ZEEKR's R&D facility, namely CEVT (China Europe Vehicle Technology Centre) in Gothenburg, Sweden, and an R&D team from China. It will have two driving solutions, under which a steering wheel and the steering-wheel-free design will be offered, respectively.

M-Vision; photo credit: ZEEKR

The ZEEKR M-Vision features an advent-garde capsule-style front design and power sliding doors that make passengers easily get into and out of the vehicle. 

ZEEKR said the ZEEKR M-Vision features a super-long designed service life of 5 years/500,000 kilometers, which indicates 16 hours of non-stop driving per day.