On February 20, 2025, Yu Chengdong, Huawei’s Executive Director and Chairman of the Terminal BG and Smart Car Solutions BU, announced at the HarmonyOS Smart Driving Summit that “the car has finally reached its awakening moment.” He introduced the flagship S800, equipped with six core technologies. Huawei’s “Four Realms” strategy spans mainstream price ranges and models, from the Wenjie and Zhijie to the Xiangjie and Zunjie. Recently, SAIC applied for the “Shangjie” trademark. Huawei’s ecosystem is expanding from “Four Realms” to “No Realms,” a crucial move in the battle for dominance in the smart car ecosystem. Huawei’s logic of “hard currency” drives its ecosystem expansion. This expansion represents a restructuring of the industry, using technology as a spear and channels as a shield. The core logic involves creating differentiated barriers through technology labeling and reshaping industry rules via ecosystem integration.
The launch of the ZunJie S800 showcases Huawei’s strong technical capabilities. It features the Tuling Longxing platform, which achieves a fully integrated architecture. The central control system reduces vehicle response time to milliseconds and supports stable control in extreme scenarios. The Harmony ALPS cabin 2.0 uses dual-layer air circulation and a double negative ion system. It improves cabin air purification efficiency, restoring a scent-free environment in 20 minutes, surpassing traditional luxury brands in mechanical performance.
These technological breakthroughs serve as Huawei’s ticket to attract car company partnerships. They also act as leverage in the competition for ecosystem dominance. For example, Huawei’s intelligent driving system, ADS 3.0, has achieved NOA in urban areas without maps. Its combination of lidar and BEV+Transformer algorithms surpasses most competitors in perception accuracy and iteration speed. Technology output marks the first step in Huawei’s ecosystem integration. The Harmony Smart Travel Alliance builds a unified ecological standard. This approach resembles the “Android model” and adds significant value. First, Huawei unifies technical interfaces. The Xinghe communication system supports connectivity between space, earth, and networks. The Harmony cockpit enables seamless interaction between vehicles, smartphones, and smart homes. Second, Huawei shares channel resources. With over 990 offline experience centers, it provides traffic access for partner models. The success of the Wenjie series relates to the exponential growth in channel exposure. Third, brand premium ties to Wenjie’s high NPS recommendations. Customers buy cars “for Huawei.” The Harmony cockpit and ADS intelligent driving experience become core selling points. In 2024, Wenjie series sales reach 389,000 units. The M7 and M9 models lead their market segments. Wenjie proves that ecosystems become Huawei’s hard currency for attracting car company collaborations. The traditional car industry’s “soul theory” is weakening. Take the Respect S800 as an example. JAC handles vehicle manufacturing while Huawei provides core technologies like the Tuling platform, Angel Seat safety system, and Whale Battery 2.0. Expanding its “circle of friends” helps Huawei spread risks while reaching a wider range of consumers. Reconstructing the Value Chain and Reshaping the Competitive Landscape Huawei’s ecosystem expansion changes the cooperation model for car companies. It also triggers chain reactions in the industry chain, market structure, and user perception. Huawei provides full-stack solutions. This transforms car companies from tech developers into manufacturing integrators. This model lowers R&D costs for car companies. However, it raises concerns about reliance on Huawei. If Huawei dominates the technology standards, car companies may become mere contract manufacturers. Additionally, resources within the HarmonyOS ecosystem are diverging. The Wanjie brand leads in sales, while the Zhijie brand struggles due to Chery’s independent strategy and insufficient support from Huawei. This “siphon effect” reveals risks in resource allocation imbalance. Meanwhile, competitors respond to Huawei’s challenge with different strategies. BYD, skilled in vertical integration, develops its own Yunxuan technology and Tian Shen Zhi Yan driving system. It achieves a dual-system coexistence with Huawei’s Qian Kun driving system in the Leopard 5 model, leveraging Huawei while maintaining tech independence. NIO expands its battery swap network, aiming to counter Huawei’s ecosystem advantage through infrastructure alliances. As of February 16, HarmonyOS sales reached 43,813 units this year, ranking first among new force brands. The Wanjie M9 has been the top seller in the 500,000 yuan (68980$) segment for seven consecutive weeks. The momentum of ecosystem expansion remains strong. On February 21, SAIC Group and Huawei signed a deep cooperation agreement in Shanghai. They officially announced strategic collaboration in product definition, manufacturing, supply chain management, and sales services to create a new generation of smart electric vehicles.
Some voices claim that “a car with Huawei is like having no Huawei.” As many car companies adopt similar Huawei solutions, competition may shift to price wars, weakening ecological value. Additionally, Seres has faced four consecutive years of losses, totaling about 9.835 billion yuan, before achieving profitability in 2024. New brands joining HarmonyOS may struggle to profit from hardware sales through Huawei alone. They must urgently explore new revenue streams like software subscriptions and data services. Huawei’s goals extend beyond being an “enabler.” It aims to increase its influence on data access and technology standards in smart cars through the HarmonyOS alliance. Huawei seeks to become the “invisible operating system” of the smart car era. The outcome of this game may involve adjusting the symbiotic boundaries between “Huawei-ization” and “de-Huawei-ization,” leading to a more complex new ecosystem.