BYD makes 'God's Eye' driver assistance standard across its range

Overview

On the evening of February 10, 2025, BYD, the Shenzhen-headquartered new energy vehicle maker, held an intelligence strategy launch at its global headquarters in Shenzhen and unveiled its advanced driver-assistance system, "God's Eye" (Tianshen zhi Yan). The system comes in three versions. It will be fitted as standard to every model priced at 100,000 yuan or more and to most models below that price. Twenty-one models equipped with the system were presented at the event.

Background

Advanced driver assistance has become a key area of competition in China's car market. Until now such features were mostly found on relatively expensive vehicles, but BYD set out a policy of making them standard on mass-market models as well. Chairman Wang Chuanfu described 2025 as the first year of "smart driving for everyone" and said that within two to three years advanced driver assistance would become as essential as seat belts and airbags.

By price band, God's Eye is standard across all models priced above 200,000 yuan, between 150,000 and 200,000 yuan, and between 100,000 and 150,000 yuan. Media reports say Version C runs on a 100 TOPS computing platform and supports functions such as automated parking and valet parking. Wang said that anyone buying a car this year would first look at whether it offers smart driving, adding that "good technology should be available to everyone." According to reports, BYD sees data from its large fleet of connected vehicles, its roughly 110,000 R&D engineers and its manufacturing scale as its three main advantages in this field.

Key Points

Version	Description	Main brands
God's Eye A	Three-lidar version (DiPilot 600)	Yangwang
God's Eye B	Lidar version (DiPilot 300)	Denza, BYD
God's Eye C	Tri-camera version (DiPilot 100)	BYD

• Wang said that God's Eye aims to allow highway driving assistance with no driver takeover needed throughout the journey.
• According to media reports, Version C uses five millimetre-wave radars and twelve cameras. It initially supports highway navigation assistance and automated parking, with functions for city roads to be added through over-the-air software updates.
• Models below 100,000 yuan that will carry the system include the Seagull, the Seal 05 DM-i and the second-generation Qin PLUS DM-i.
• BYD also announced that its Xuanji vehicle architecture would fully integrate DeepSeek's models.

Around the time of the launch, nearly 20 Chinese carmakers had announced that they were integrating DeepSeek into their smart cockpits or AI operations, showing how quickly large AI models are being combined with vehicles. Cars are steadily evolving from simple means of transport into smart devices that bring together software, data and artificial intelligence.

For Japan's automotive industry, the speed and cost structure of smart-driving adoption in China are important reference points for understanding how vehicle technology is changing globally. There may also be room for companies on both sides to exchange views on technical standards and safety evaluation.

What It Means for Japan–Shenzhen Exchange

BYD's decision to extend driver assistance down to its lower-priced models appears to show that Shenzhen carmakers regard vehicle intelligence as a major axis of competition. BYD is also expanding passenger car sales in Japan, and attention is turning to how such technology may be applied to the models it sells there.

Sensors, semiconductors and software, the fields that underpin driver-assistance technology, are also areas where Japanese companies have strengths. As Shenzhen's automotive industry becomes more intelligent, the balance of cooperation and competition in components and technology is likely to attract attention.

The spread of driver assistance also raises new questions about road safety, regulatory standards and user education. Rules on assisted driving differ from country to country, and how such technology adapts to local requirements when it enters overseas markets is another point to watch.

Outlook

The 21 models presented are to be launched in stages. Whether God's Eye will be fitted to models for overseas markets including Japan, and when, has not been announced.

From the Association

Vehicle electrification and intelligence are among the key themes in industrial exchange between Shenzhen and Japan. The Association will continue to follow related developments and to provide a platform for exchange among companies and stakeholders from both regions.