At the 2026 World New Energy Vehicle Congress (WNEVC), held in Haikou, Hainan from September 22 to 24, Chen Liming, Vice Chairman of Horizon Robotics, took the stage to share his insights on the intelligent driving market. He noted that despite passenger vehicle sales falling 20% year-on-year in the first half of this year, city-level NOA (Navigate on Autopilot) has bucked the trend with significant growth.

In the first half of the year, the penetration rate of city NOA among domestic brands approached 30%, marking a nearly 15-percentage-point increase year-on-year. For new energy vehicles, city NOA penetration reached 40%, a surge of nearly 20 percentage points compared to last year. The adoption rate for models priced between 100,000 and 200,000 yuan, as well as those above 200,000 yuan, grew by approximately 24% each, reaching penetration levels of 52.8% and 88%, respectively. For vehicles priced above 200,000 yuan, city NOA is increasingly becoming a preferred configuration for car buyers.

Citing a survey by McKinsey on Chinese consumers, Chen noted that over the past three years, city NOA has climbed from the fifth to the third most important factor in car-purchasing decisions. This year, for models priced above 200,000 yuan, city NOA has effectively become a must-have feature for users.

Discussing shifts in market and consumer awareness, Chen stated that 2024 marked the peak of city NOA marketing hype. The market was flooded with promotional claims like L2.9 and "drivable nationwide," some of which misled consumers and contributed to several severe safety incidents. In response, relevant national ministries and commissions promptly introduced policies, standards, and regulations to supervise and rectify the industry, clarifying safety bottom lines and functional boundaries. Consequently, consumers have developed a more rational understanding of intelligent driving safety and real-world performance.

In his view, the industry's focus has now shifted back to authentic product experience. When evaluating intelligent driving systems today, more attention is paid to real usage metrics such as activation rate, interventions per thousand kilometers, and the proportion of mileage driven with ADAS engaged. He explained that product experience comprises two layers: functional experience and emotional experience. The core of functional experience is usability and reliability, while emotional experience is about whether users are willing to use the system, feel confident in it, and enjoy the interaction.

Chen emphasized that intelligence has two primary pillars: intelligent driving and intelligent cockpits. Intelligent driving primarily delivers functional value, corresponding to the functional experience, while intelligent cockpits focus more on emotional value, aligning with the emotional experience.