NIO’s First Self-developed Chip Is Aimed at Intelligent Cabin, with Ex-Huawei Hisilicon Expert in Charge

NIO is currently conducting independent research and development of chips. Last month, Bai Jian, Vice President of Hardware at NIO, posted on social media: ‘In the next one to two years, we will independently research and mass-produce some key chips led by AD chips.’ Now, more related leaked information has emerged.

The first self-developed chip from NIO will be targeted towards intelligent cabin. Informed sources revealed that NIO‘s first self-developed chip adopts the 7nm process technology and will be manufactured by Samsung, with the research and development team led by a former Huawei HiSilicon executive.

Compared to the currently popular autonomous driving chips, the competition in the field of intelligent cabin chips is indeed relatively low-key. Many car manufacturers on the market choose Qualcomm’s cabin chips, while self-developed cabin chips are expected to make NIO‘s vehicle connectivity more integrated, coinciding with the upcoming launch of NIO smartphones.

According to the official data released by NIO, as of the first quarter of 2023, NIO has applied for, published, and authorized over 6,000 patents worldwide. In August, NIO delivered 19,329 vehicles, an increase of 81% year-on-year but a decrease of 5.5% month-on-month.

SEE ALSO: NIO Phone Prototype: Curved Back and Large Camera Module

It is worth mentioning that the highly anticipated NIO smartphone has recently been approved by the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology. The model number is N2301, which supports 100W fast charging. The applicant is NIO Mobile Technology Co., Ltd.

Prior to this, the NIO smartphone has already obtained radio approval from the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology. This model will support 2G, China Unicom 3G, CDMA, China Mobile + China Unicom 4G, as well as 5G network standards. It also supports UWB ultra-wideband technology. This means that the NIO smartphone is expected to be used as a digital key for NIO cars or form short-range connections with other smart devices.

NIO founder William Li said that NIO plans to develop a new smartphone every year, just like Apple. He revealed that the NIO phone will be released and delivered in the third quarter of this year, with an expected price range of 5000 to 7000 yuan (＄686-961).