The rise of domestic new energy vehicles faces huge challenges: the domestic production rate of automotive chips is less than 10%.
The rapid development of new energy vehicles and the growing demand for chips.
With the rapid development of China's new energy vehicle industry, the market share of China's new energy vehicles is increasing, and its share in the world is also rising. However, with the promotion of new energy vehicles and the continuous improvement of intelligence, the market demand for semiconductor chips is also increasing. An ordinary fuel cell has only about 500 chips, while a new energy vehicle is about two or three thousand, or even higher. This also means that the intelligence level of future vehicles will be higher and higher, and the demand for chips will also increase.
Expansion: With the superiority of new energy vehicles in terms of environmental protection and economy, their sales and market share continue to rise. According to relevant data, the number of new energy vehicles in China has exceeded 20 million, and the penetration rate is as high as more than 40%. China is already the world's largest car manufacturer, sales, and exporter. But at the same time, it also puts forward new requirements for the development of new energy vehicles, that is, the huge demand for new energy vehicles. Considering the chips of a new energy vehicle, 20 million new energy vehicles will consume about 40 billion chips. However, the degree of localization of chips in China is less than 10%, which has caused a large number of chips to rely on foreign countries. This problem has become a major safety hazard in the development of new energy vehicles in China.
The localization rate of chips for domestic new energy vehicles is less than 10%.
According to ICINSIGHTS, in 2021, China's self-produced automotive chips accounted for only 5%, and in 2022, this proportion is expected to rise from 7% to 10% in 2023. This shows that more than 90% of China's automotive semiconductor materials rely on foreign countries, and its degree of localization is not high. Compared with the rapid development of new energy vehicles, the development of domestic semiconductor companies in this area seems to be lagging behind.
Extended reading: Although China has become the world's largest automobile consumer market, in terms of chips, especially in automotive chips, China's degree of localization is still very low. Some data show that the degree of localization of chips for new energy vehicles independently developed by China is less than 10%. This means that more than 90% of China's automotive integrated circuits still rely on foreign countries, which has great problems and certain potential risks. According to the statistics of ICINSIGHTS, before 2023, less than 10% of China's self-developed new energy vehicle chips will be independently controllable in China. At present, although several semiconductor companies have entered the automotive semiconductor industry in China, most of them are still at a low level and do not constitute a substantial competitive advantage. There has also been some progress in some non-core chips such as grid control, wipers, T-boxMCU terminals and lights. As for the automotive industry, which is of interest to OEMs, none of them are interested in it, let alone have any big ambitions.
Difficulty: Difficulties and obstacles of high-end integrated circuits in automobile manufacturing.
Among them, high-end integrated circuits in the automotive industry are difficult to realize due to their complex processes, complex processes, and complex processes. First of all, we must have certain technical reserves in the automotive industry, such as functional safety, information security, quality management, etc., which are all things that semiconductor manufacturers must do. Secondly, in order to manufacture a high-performance automotive-specific chip, it must be matched with the entire car and other chips, including the real-time calibration of the car and the bench, and a variety of communication bus interfaces, so as to form a complete automotive industry ecosystem. At the same time, it also requires compliance with a number of requirements such as the functionality and safety of vehicles, which requires us to form close strategic partners with upstream and downstream enterprises such as vehicle manufacturers and Tier 1 2 to obtain corresponding resource support. In addition, the major semiconductor giants have set some restrictions on protocols, patents and technologies to prevent other manufacturers from catching up with them, which poses a great challenge to new entrants in the automotive industry.
Expansion: The manufacturing of integrated circuits in the size of automobiles is very difficult, which brings great difficulties to integrated circuit manufacturers. First of all, it is necessary to have sufficient experience in automotive specifications to manufacture chips for high-end automotive specifications. These include operational security, information security, quality management certification, and more. Vehicle-level chips must not only have good working performance, but also have safety and reliability in different road conditions. Secondly, in the process of manufacturing high-end automotive chips, it must also be matched with the entire car and other chips to adapt to the overall requirements of the entire car. For example, to achieve real-time calibration with the car, it is necessary to adapt to various types of communication buses. This requires the formation of a complete industry ecosystem, including collaboration with OEMs and Tier 1 and 2 manufacturers. In addition, automotive chips need to be certified for functional safety and information safety, which requires close collaboration with industry authorities. In addition, the major chip giants have set higher barriers in protocols, patents and technologies, making new companies in the automotive industry face a severe test. Therefore, in order to manufacture a high-quality automotive ASIC, it is necessary to have sufficient technical force, rich experience, and the ability to work closely with upstream and downstream enterprises in the entire industrial chain.
Fourth, countermeasures: increase cooperation, and strive to achieve the development of localized chips and the construction of the first chain.
China's new energy vehicles' dependence on chips needs to be further strengthened. First of all, it is necessary to strengthen the independent research strength of domestic chip manufacturing enterprises, and continue to promote scientific and technological innovation and product updates to enhance their competitive advantage in the automotive industry. Secondly, domestic car companies should further support domestic car companies and promote the localization of their own brands through joint development and joint development. At the same time, it is necessary to further strengthen the cooperation between production, learning and application, build a good scientific and technological innovation ecosystem, and improve the overall innovation strength and competitiveness of the industry. Only through multi-party cooperation and increased cooperation can we truly achieve China's independent research and establish a complete industrial chain.
Extended reading: To fundamentally change the domestic dependence on new energy vehicles, there must be a strong coordination mechanism. First of all, it is necessary to strengthen the independent research and development of the domestic integrated circuit industry, and focus on scientific and technological progress and product renewal. This is of great significance for improving the core position of domestic semiconductor companies in the automotive industry. At the same time, domestic new energy vehicle companies should also support local semiconductor manufacturing enterprises more and promote their development through joint development. Through further collaboration, we can promote the design and manufacture of integrated circuits in China. At the same time, it is necessary to strengthen the cooperation in production, learning and application, and build a good scientific and technological innovation ecology. This is of great significance for promoting independent innovation and market competition in the whole industry. Only through multi-party cooperation and increased cooperation can we truly achieve the independent development of chips in China and establish a complete industrial chain. Only in this way can China's new energy vehicles completely get rid of foreign dependence and continue to develop.
The conclusion is: judging from the current situation that the localization rate of domestic new energy vehicle chips is less than 10%, the demand for chips for new energy vehicles in China is increasing, especially for chips at the high-end vehicle specification level. At present, there is still a great distance between China's semiconductor manufacturing enterprises and the technical level of automotive chips, and the degree of localization of products is not high, which is difficult to meet the needs of the market. In order to solve this problem, it is necessary to enhance the independent research and development strength of domestic chip enterprises, conduct in-depth exchanges with new energy vehicle companies, and strengthen cooperation in production, learning, and use, so as to build a complete scientific and technological innovation ecosystem. Only with multi-party cooperation, the independent research and development of domestic chips and the construction of the industrial chain can break the dependence on foreign countries and ensure the sustainable development of China's new energy vehicle industry.