Tesla and BYD are already major rivals and two of the world's largest carmakers. In fact, Tesla CEO Elon Musk has noted that the only true Tesla rivals are automakers out of China, the largest automotive market in the world. Now, reports suggest BYD is ready to up the ante with a new advanced driver-assist system to compete with Tesla's Autopilot.
Tesla Autopilot has been around for many years, and most people have probably heard of it at this point. Tesla claims to make the safest cars in history, due in part to their unique design and powertrain. However, the fact that Autopilot is standard on every Tesla is also something the automaker touts.
The Autopilot system really isn't all that different from many of the better suites of advanced driver-assist systems on the market today. It combines several different active and automated safety technologies to help a driver pilot the car on the highway, including adaptive cruise control and lane-keeping features.
According to Electrek, Chinese research company HiEV Research Institute published a new report revealing that BYD will bring a new advanced safety system to market in Q3 2023. It will reportedly be a high-speed navigation-assisted driving function named DNP, that functions much like Tesla's Navigate on Autopilot, which allows the car to change lanes and enter and exit the freeway, essentially following the navigation while the driver supervises in case there's a need to take over control of the car.
It seems BYD's initial goal is to offer a highway assist system to rival Tesla's Autopilot and Xpeng's XNGP advanced driver-assist technology. BYD's assist system may eventually have the ability to be upgraded to add features that will also work on city streets, which would follow suit with Tesla's Full Self-Driving capability package.
Car News China writes that BYD's DNP will first arrive on the upcoming 2023 BYD Han, which is an upscale electric sedan due in the fourth quarter of 2023. Reports suggest the tech will also be offered on BYD's premium F brand, which aims to offer an electric pickup truck and an off-road-ready electric SUV.
