Guangzhou Automobile Group, one of the first Chinese passenger car manufacturers to secure a pilot license for Level 3 autonomous driving technology, said it plans to launch its first L3 self-driving auto in the fourth quarter of this year.

GAC will also begin delivering vehicles with pre-installed L4 autonomous driving tech this year, promoting their large-scale operation next year and releasing such models in 2027, Chairman Feng Xingya said on April 12.

"The transition from L2 advanced driver assistance systems to L3 autonomous driving is not just a tech upgrade, it is a shift from human-machine shared control to system dominance," according to Feng, who is also general manager of GAC. "It also highlights a qualitative transformation in users safety demands."

Smart driving has become a critical battleground for Chinese automakers, with the penetration rate of L2+ assisted-driving features in China's passenger car market likely to reach 65 percent this year, industry insiders noted. Competition in the L4 high-level autonomous driving area is also intensifying, they added.

In 2023, GAC invested in Didi Autonomous Driving to accelerate L4 self-driving tech development and production. Its new energy vehicle unit, GAC Aion, allied with Didi to set up a 50/50 joint venture last year.

Andi Technology, the JV, has unveiled its first mass-produced model pre-installed with L4 self-driving tech, with mass production and deliveries to start later this year. It also plans to achieve market validation through an artificial intelligence + mass production + operations model in some areas of Guangzhou and Beijing next year.