September major joint venture cooperation overview: GAC and Huawei's Partnership Upgraded; Dongfeng Establishes New Joint Venture Company

In reviewing the just-concluded September, the automotive industry's joint ventures and collaborations have reached a new peak. For instance, Mercedes-Benz has partnered with Momenta to tackle intelligent driving, GAC and Huawei have further upgraded their cooperation, Dongfeng has established a new joint venture company, CATL and Li Auto have reached a comprehensive strategic cooperation, Magna has secured a vehicle manufacturing order from XPeng Motors, and Hesai has officially announced obtaining a lidar fixed-point order from Xiaomi Auto for 2026-27. This article summarizes the joint ventures and cooperation events that occurred in September.

Dongfeng collaborates with Tencent and Huawei respectively to establish new joint ventures.

On September 28th, Dongfeng Motor and Tencent held a strategic cooperation signing ceremony in Wuhan. This collaboration will deeply integrate the core strengths of both parties—leveraging Dongfeng Motor's extensive experience in automotive research, production, and marketing, and utilizing Tencent's advantages in intelligence and digitalization. This precise empowerment will aid Dongfeng Motor in the implementation of its "One Core, Two Foundations, Two Pillars" intelligent system and its internationalization leap strategy, fully building a new win-win cooperation pattern of "Automobile + Internet".

On September 19, at the Huawei Connect Conference's Global Summit for Manufacturing and Large Enterprises, Automotive Industry Sub-Forum, the joint innovation laboratory of Dongfeng Motor and Huawei was officially inaugurated. This marks a new phase in their partnership following the signing of the strategic cooperation agreement on May 23, 2025.

Image source: Dongfeng Motor

The laboratory will leverage Dongfeng Motor's extensive experience in the research, production, supply, and marketing of complete vehicles, combined with Huawei's strengths in information and communication technology, product innovation, and research and development. The focus will be on enhancing cooperation in areas such as in-vehicle software development platforms, assisted intelligent driving, AI general application scenarios, and embodied intelligence. Both parties stated that the laboratory aims to promote digital and intelligent innovation cycles across the entire automotive value chain and to create more joint innovative solutions.

On the previous two days (September 17), Dongfeng Motor Group Co., Ltd. issued an announcement stating that it has signed an investment agreement with Dongfeng Motor Co., Ltd., Xiangyang Holdings, and Xianggao Investment to establish a joint venture company. The joint venture will primarily engage in the manufacturing and sales of intelligent off-road vehicles.

The registered capital of the new joint venture company is 8.47 billion RMB. According to the agreement, Dongfeng Motor Group Co., Ltd. will contribute 3.55 billion RMB in the form of intangible asset usage rights and physical assets, accounting for approximately 41.9% of the registered capital. Dongfeng Motor Co., Ltd. will contribute 920 million RMB in physical assets, holding a 10.9% stake. Xiangyang Holdings will contribute 2.88 billion RMB in cash, and Xianggao Investment will contribute 1.12 billion RMB in cash, holding 34% and 13.2% stakes, respectively.

The achievement of these three collaborations demonstrates the strategic ambition of traditional car manufacturers to proactively engage in the wave of intelligence and electrification.

Mercedes-Benz collaborates with Momenta to revolutionize intelligent driving.

On September 25th, Mercedes-Benz and Momenta officially announced that the intelligent driving assistance system jointly developed by both parties, based on Momenta's Flywheel large model, is set to be released and will be first equipped on the new domestically-produced all-electric CLA model launching this fall.

Image source: Momenta

The system is equipped with powerful intelligent assisted driving capabilities, enabling intelligent assisted driving from parking space to parking space in scenarios such as highways, urban areas, and parking lots. In the future, this system will be extended to more Mercedes-Benz models, continuously supporting the layout of Mercedes-Benz intelligent assisted driving.

With the official launch of the all-electric Mercedes-Benz CLA as the brand's first model equipped with the Momenta assisted driving system, this breakthrough not only signifies a critical step in Mercedes-Benz's journey towards intelligent transformation but also heralds a new phase of deep integration between international luxury brands and Chinese technology companies.

Ford China establishes a wholly-owned subsidiary to integrate channels.

On September 23, Ford China announced the establishment of a wholly-owned subsidiary, Ford Sales Service Company, which will be responsible for the marketing, sales, and service operations of Ford-branded passenger cars and pickup trucks in China. The company will officially begin operations on October 1, 2025.

On the same day, Jiangling Motors announced a strategic adjustment of channel resources for Ford brand passenger cars and Ford brand pickup products: entrusting Ford Sales & Service Company with full responsibility for distribution services.

Ford's establishment of a wholly-owned subsidiary is undoubtedly a major innovation in its channel and service system in China.

Partnership Upgrade

On September 19, the "Qijing" brand, jointly created by GAC Group and Huawei QianKun, was officially launched. According to the official introduction, the "Qijing" brand is positioned towards the younger demographic, focusing on core capabilities such as intelligent driving and smart cabins.

Image Source: GAC Group

According to the plan of both parties, Qijing's products will be fully equipped with Huawei QianKun's intelligent technology, with the brand positioned as high-end intelligent new energy. In terms of intelligence, ecology, and brand synergy, it will deeply integrate the respective advantages of GAC Group and Huawei. From the development path perspective, the "Qijing" brand can be seen as a further implementation of the Huawei Auto project, which also means that the cooperation between GAC and Huawei is quickly advancing to the next stage.

As an important part of GAC's "Panyu Action" reform, Huawang is not only a key attempt by the group to carry out reforms for its own brands and R&D system, but also marks a further concentration of internal resources within the group.

Supply chain

Hesai officially announced that it has been designated to supply lidar for Xiaomi Auto in 2026-27.

On September 30th, Hesai Technology announced that it will continue to deepen its cooperative relationship with Xiaomi Auto as a core strategic supplier from 2026 to 2027, maintaining its position as a core strategic supplier to provide support and services to Xiaomi Auto.

Xiaomi is not only a significant business partner of Hesai but also an important shareholder. Xiaomi Group led Hesai Technology's Series D financing in 2021, with an amount reaching $374 million, providing support for the company's technology research and development and market expansion.

Image source: Hesai Technology

This collaboration signifies the deep integration and synergistic development of upstream and downstream enterprises in the intelligent driving industry chain, reflecting the multiple strategic values of technological complementarity, capital ties, and ecological co-construction.

CATL (Contemporary Amperex Technology Co., Limited)Li AutoEstablish a comprehensive strategic cooperation.

On September 19, Li Auto and CATL signed a five-year comprehensive strategic cooperation agreement and completed the plaque-awarding ceremony. It is reported that the two parties will engage in deep cooperation in areas such as battery safety and supercharging technology, jointly expanding domestic and international business, and collaboratively promoting battery technology innovation and global expansion.

Image source: CATL (Contemporary Amperex Technology Co., Limited)

The five-year deep collaboration between Li Xiang and CATL is not only a key strategy for the car manufacturer to secure its core battery supply chain and ensure production capacity, but also a win-win choice for the battery giant to consolidate its leading application scenarios and coordinate globalization.

Visteon and Future Black Technology Reach Strategic Partnership

On September 19th, FUTURUS announced that it has officially reached a strategic cooperation with Visteon the previous day to jointly develop advanced Head-Up Display (HUD) systems for global automotive manufacturers.

Image source: Future Black Technology

The collaboration focuses on augmented reality head-up display (AR-HUD), windshield head-up display (W-HUD), and panoramic head-up display (P-HUD) technologies, aiming to seamlessly integrate real-time driving data and advanced driver-assistance system (ADAS) information into the driver's field of view.

By integrating Visteon's leading advantages in research and development and manufacturing in the field of automotive cockpit electronics with FUTURUS's expertise in optical innovation, panoramic AR, and computing technology, the smart cockpit experience will be further enhanced to meet the growing market demand for HUD.

Junsheng Electronics has secured a global order worth 15 billion yuan for an intelligent project from a leading automaker.

On September 15th, Joyson Electronics announced that it has recently secured automotive intelligence project nominations from two leading brand OEM customers. The company will provide products globally, including central computing units (CCUs) integrated with smart driving, intelligent connectivity, and smart cockpits, as well as intelligent connectivity products. According to the customers' plans, the total order value for the project's entire lifecycle is expected to be approximately RMB 15 billion, with mass production scheduled to begin in 2027.

Image Source: Joyson Electronics

This order further consolidates Joyson Electronics' core position in the global intelligent driving supply chain.

Magna secures a vehicle manufacturing order from Chinese automaker XPeng Motors.

On September 15th, XPeng Motors reached a deep cooperation with Magna Steyr's factory in Graz, Austria, officially initiating the process of localized production in Europe. This collaboration adopts an entrusted production model, which will gradually deepen the level of localization. The XPeng G6 and G9 will enter mass production in Q3 of 2025. These two models have previously been launched in Europe and have a certain market foundation.

It is reported that the Graz factory will expand production to include XPeng's pure electric sedans, small and medium-sized SUVs, and ultra-electric models in the future. Currently, XPeng has completed a research and production closed-loop layout in Europe, reserving production capacity for market penetration in the region.

This cooperation is expected to help XPeng Motors establish a foothold in the European market and expand its market share. Its localized practical experience and technology implementation model may also inject new momentum into the innovative development of the global smart electric vehicle industry.

Horizon collaborates with Hello to accelerate L4 autonomous driving research and development.

On September 11, Horizon and Hello jointly announced that they have officially signed a strategic cooperation agreement. This cooperation aims to develop a low-cost, high-safety, high-reliability, and highly available intelligent driving system based on the operational scenarios and demands of Robotaxi (autonomous driving taxis), leveraging their respective technological advantages, and to promote the commercialization of Robotaxi technology.

Image source: Horizon

According to the cooperation agreement, Horizon and Hello will focus on deep collaboration around the L4 level autonomous driving full-stack solution, covering software algorithms, automotive-grade domain controllers, and supporting hardware technology, and will complete end-to-end system integration and mass production verification. This joint solution is intended to be applied to Hello's future large-scale Robotaxi fleet, providing core software and hardware support.

This collaboration is regarded as a key step for Horizon in its full-scenario intelligent driving technology layout, marking the expansion of its technology system from L2 level assisted driving to L4 level autonomous driving.

Valeo and Momenta Reach Strategic Partnership

On September 5th, Valeo and Momenta signed a strategic cooperation agreement, under which the two parties will establish a comprehensive and long-term partnership in China and global markets, jointly developing advanced mid-to-high level integrated driving assistance systems and autonomous driving products, systems, and solutions.

Image source: Valeo

In this collaboration, Valeo and Momenta will fully leverage their respective advantages to cooperate in areas such as mid-to-high level integrated driving assistance system computing platforms, sensor technology, and software. They aim to create cutting-edge system-level solutions and lead the innovative trend in intelligent mobility technology. At the same time, both parties will jointly provide customers with full lifecycle system support and services, including jointly exploring the advanced autonomous driving market, co-developing new products, providing system integration, and continuous upgrades and iterations.

On this basis, both parties will continue to explore more diverse cooperation models to help customers achieve faster application of autonomous driving technology and accelerate the transition from development to market application.

This collaboration is a deep integration between Tier1 and the intelligent driving technology company, breaking the barriers of a single entity in software and hardware collaboration to accelerate commercialization. It also reflects the new trend in the global smart car track shifting from "technological breakthroughs" to "industrial chain ecosystem collaboration."