Various car manufacturing companies are taking an interest in electric autonomous vehicles. As it becomes essential to introduce new electric vehicles. No doubt, electric vehicles are a wonderful innovation in the autonomous industry. Similarly, Chinese automakers are getting in on the electric car market in a big way.
A Chinese startup (a Tesla competitor) autonomous vehicles. For that purpose, they are putting lots of effort in order to eliminate the chore of driving and make transportation a truly comfortable experience.
Nio’s CEO Padmasree Warrior said, “The problem with today’s car is they try to emulate the smartphone interface and smartphone capability into the car. But the smartphone is not just a better cell phone; it’s fundamentally a very different device. We want to be the first company that builds the next-generation mobile space.”
The main goal of the company of the car is a computer on wheels. They are developing electric vehicles in a completely different manner. For that purpose, they are planning to integrate self-driving technologies into their vehicles.
Currently, they are working on an electric SUV that they will launch in China in 2018. The company named it as Nio ES8. NIO ES8 will be a seven-seater electric vehicle capable of Level 2 autonomy.
It will serve as a testing ground for its more advanced self-driving technology. The company plans to gather as much data as possible from the vehicle to build an EV with Level 4 autonomy, most likely the Nio Eve. They are also in the process of developing wireless charging technology to integrate into its vehicles.
Warrior said, “We want to build a living space that moves you. We are developing autonomous vehicles that will be comfortable. It will serve high-tech environments where riders can watch movies, take conference calls, and even sleep.”
Tesla Competitor:
Nio is taking an “inside out” approach to developing its cars. Like Tesla, the company is considering other innovations beyond the digital space.
Warrior said, “Wireless charging and things like this become much more important when there’s a self-driving car, so definitely that’s on our horizon. We are looking at that.”
“Nio will face steep competition in the space as Waymo, Ford, General Motors, and Uber all look to ramp up their self-driving car efforts. It will also face challenges in the electric space from Tesla, which is making a bigger push into China, and potentially Lucid Motors, a newcomer with a similar digital strategy as Nio,” she said.