Bloomberg reported that ByteDance will invest in Qingzhou Zhihang.
On the evening of March 4, Bloomberg reported that ByteDance will invest in China’s autonomous driving startup Qingzhou Zhihang. Qingzhou Zhihang will raise at least US$25 million.
In response to this news, Qingzhou Zhihang responded that they have indeed received tens of millions of U.S. dollars in A1 round of investment. The financing will be used to build an autonomous driving “automated production super factory”, but the name of the investor in this round is temporarily It is not convenient to disclose.
Established in 2019, Qingzhou Zhihang is the only autonomous driving company with a Waymo background in China. It mainly develops L4 autonomous driving solutions for complex urban traffic scenarios.
Its core technologies include large-scale intelligent simulation systems, autonomous learning decision-making planning frameworks, and multi-sensor fusion and timing fusion schemes. Different from the traditional deployment of unmanned vehicles, Qingzhou Zhihang will use its intelligent simulation system to carry out a large number of simulation tests before the field test, so as to be reliable and safe the first time on the road. Relying on these core capabilities, Qingzhou Zhihang turns engineer time into machine time, hoping to build an autonomous driving “automated production super factory.”
At present, the Dragon Boat ONE (also known as the Qingzhou unmanned minibus) deployed by Qingzhou Zhihang has landed in Suzhou, Shenzhen, Wuhan and other cities, and the country’s first normalized operation of 5G has been launched in Suzhou. The People’s Public Transport project will launch the country’s first unmanned public transport monthly pass in Shenzhen, and this year will also launch the country’s first unmanned shared online bus.
Among them, the Dragon Boat series of unmanned buses are mainly used in scenes such as subway connection dedicated lines, micro-circulation buses, shared net-hailing buses, express buses, commuter ferrying in the park, sightseeing tours and other scenes. Qingzhou Zhihang adopts the operation model of “peak microcirculation + Pingfeng network appointment” to solve the problem of high empty load rate of traditional buses during the peak period and break the boundary between unmanned minibuses and unmanned taxis.
Qingzhou Zhihang Dragon Boat ONE unmanned minibus (Source: Qingzhou Zhihang)
Qingzhou Zhihang founder Yu Qian believes that unmanned driving is a trillion-level super long-term track. In the long run, it lies in the battle for efficiency in the use of talent, data and capital; how to combine scenarios for effective business Transformation is the key direction at this stage. Advanced technology path and correct systematic play will be the key to long-term success.
In the view of Yu QianIn the short term, the most suitable scenario for unmanned driving is neither traditional public transport nor taxis, but a new species in the public transport field-microcirculation public transport in the outbreak period. The microcirculation bus is characterized by its small body, short route, flexible operation, and fast turnover, which can evacuate traffic in time and ensure the speed and efficiency of the public transportation system.
According to the information provided by Qingzhou Zhihang, the microcirculation bus scene has four major characteristics: first, medium and low speeds, passengers can control the expected speed of the vehicle, and the speed is maintained between 20km/h and 50km/h; Second, the fixed route, the minibus is repeatedly honed on the same route, which can ensure driving safety, and can be combined with V2X to achieve traffic light priority and early warning; third, multi-person travel has social benefits and enjoys priority on public roads right. Fourth, business model users are separated from customers, Qingzhou Zhihang provides the services required by users and purchases by customers, which can quickly achieve commercial closed-loop.
Qingzhou Zhihang said that its Dragon Boat series of unmanned buses are based on the self-developed “Driven-by-QCraft” unmanned driving solution. The main feature is high configuration and low driving, built with Robotaxi technology. In terms of function, it can realize 360-degree perception without blind spots, support operation without safety personnel, and have a 5G+V2X vehicle display system. As the first unmanned minibus of the Dragon Boat series of unmanned buses, the Dragon Boat ONE has a vehicle speed of 20 to 50 kilometers per hour and can legally run on open urban roads.
At present, in addition to technology, the speed at which autonomous driving can land depends on two major factors: national policies and market demand.
From a policy perspective, on December 30, 2020, the Ministry of Transport’s “Guiding Opinions on Promoting the Development and Application of Road Traffic Autonomous Driving Technology” mentioned that in autonomous passenger transportation In terms of services, it supports the exploration and development of autonomous driving public transportation demonstration applications in closed rapid transit systems, industrial parks and other areas.
Qingzhou Zhihang stated that the underlying reason for “transit first” is that China attaches great importance to the fine management of cities. As a city’s infrastructure, urban public transportation can meet residents’ travel needs, improve urban transportation efficiency, realize energy conservation and green emission reduction, and promote the creation of greater economic effects in the city. At present, my country’s urban public transportation has gradually achieved full electric power, and the next step will be to intelligent network, network connection and sharing.
In addition, the initial stage of unmanned driving requires a large investment, requiring the joint efforts of all roles such as the government, enterprises, and society. From a global perspective, China, which has a strong ability to mobilize social resources, will take the lead in large-scale implementation and rapidly reduce the cost of implementation.
In terms of market demand, Qingzhou Zhihang said that at present, China’s demand for microcirculation buses is already very strong, and it will enter a blowout period. Taking Fuzhou as an example, the current Fuzhou transportationThere are 2 subway lines in Yingzhong, with an operating mileage of 58.5 kilometers, 46 stations, and 25 subway connection dedicated lines have been opened, and nearly 140 micro-buses have been put into use. According to data from the Ministry of Transport, as of December 31, 2020, a total of 44 cities across the country have opened and operated 233 urban rail transit lines, with an operating mileage of 7545.5 kilometers and 4660 stations. It is conservatively estimated that there will be more than 2500 dedicated subway connection lines launched nationwide, and there will be a shortage of tens of thousands of micro-buses. With the expansion of public transportation, the demand for micro-circulation buses will further increase.
At the same time, traditional buses have a high empty load rate and poor maneuverability, which also urgently needs to be balanced by vehicles with more flexible operation and more market-oriented pricing, such as shared online-hailing buses. Unmanned minibuses are highly adaptable and have low marginal costs for replication and expansion, and have significant economies of scale. Once commercial barriers are formed, it will be difficult for new entrants to break. This also means that financing capacity will largely affect the early establishment of commercial barriers for such companies.
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I am the author Wang Yijin. For business exchanges, please email wangyijin@36kr.com, and please note the company + name + position + intention.