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C-V2X continues to evolve, accelerating the development of connected vehicles

According to Strategy Analytics, by 2024, nearly 75% of new cars will be embedded with cellular technology - the automotive industry will be one of the first major industries to be transformed by cellular technology. C-V2X (Cellular Vehicle-to-Everything) can connect cars with the surrounding environment and cloud intelligence, helping to improve traffic efficiency, reduce accidents, and enhance travel experience. 5G technology, with unprecedented reliability, extremely low latency and high speed, strongly supports the continued evolution of C-V2X and the implementation of a wide range of use cases.

From LTE-V2X to 5G NR V2X, Qualcomm has been involved in the major evolution and global deployment of C-V2X technology. In June 2017, 3GPP completed the first complete LTE-V2X standard. Qualcomm launched the 9150 C-V2X chipset at the first time, which is optimized for 3GPP Release 14 version C-V2X PC5 direct communication and supports high-precision positioning including Beidou system. As of January 2020, 11 manufacturers around the world have adopted the 9150 C-V2X chipset in their modules; more than 12 RSU manufacturers plan to adopt the above modules in their product portfolios. With the support of this chipset, C-V2X products launched by more than 10 Tier 1 suppliers and automotive aftermarket OBU manufacturers around the world are about to be launched. Earlier this year, Qualcomm also launched the C-V2X reference platform for roadside units (RSU) and on-board units (OBU), accelerating the launch of C-V2X products through vertical integration of software and hardware components.

5G technology is constantly evolving. In early July this year, the second version of the 5G standard, Rel-16, was frozen, which included C-V2X's 5G NR direct communication technology. Its key enhanced features will support advanced applications such as collaborative driving and sensor sharing, helping to improve the efficiency and safety of autonomous and semi-autonomous driving. With its long-term technical accumulation and continuous innovation in the mobile field, Qualcomm is continuing to support the evolution of the C-V2X roadmap and provide new support features for use cases such as connected autonomous vehicles.

From technical standard formulation to testing and verification and commercial implementation, the collaboration of upstream and downstream manufacturers in the industry chain is crucial. Over the years, Qualcomm has actively participated in and cooperated with leading global companies to conduct a large number of test trials and interoperability demonstrations to accelerate the implementation of C-V2X technology. In April 2018, Qualcomm, together with 5GAA, Audi, and Ford, successfully achieved the world's first C-V2X direct communication technology demonstration across different car manufacturers. In May 2018, Qualcomm and Rohde & Schwarz completed the world's first GCF (Global Certification Forum)-based certification link, providing conditions for the industry to conduct C-V2X interoperability testing by building a test and certification link. In July 2020, Qualcomm, Audi, Ericsson, SWARCO Traffic Systems GmbH and the University of Kaiserslautern jointly announced the successful completion of the world's first announced C-V2X trial project, which was launched in December 2016 and strongly proved that C-V2X technology has reliability and high performance.

China has always been a leader in the development of C-V2X technology. In recent years, the country has attached great importance to the development of the C-V2X industry. The State Council, the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology, the Ministry of Transport, the National Development and Reform Commission and other departments have successively issued relevant policies to accelerate the implementation of C-V2X. Qualcomm also continues to deepen its cooperation with Chinese automotive ecosystem partners. In September 2018, Qualcomm, together with Qianxun Location and Quectel Communications, jointly announced that they would launch a complete high-precision positioning global navigation satellite system (GNSS) solution for the Chinese automotive market. In November 2018, Qualcomm and Datang Telecom Group successfully completed the world's first multi-chipset manufacturer C-V2X direct communication interoperability test; in the same month, Qualcomm also worked with leading automotive companies to complete the world's first cross-communication module, cross-terminal, and cross-vehicle LTE-V2X interoperability application demonstration. In October 2019, Qualcomm, together with more than 30 leading companies in the automotive industry chain, participated in China's first "cross-chip module, cross-terminal, cross-vehicle, and cross-security platform" C-V2X application demonstration. Many milestone cases have witnessed Qualcomm’s efforts to work with partners to promote the development of automotive C-V2X.

"5G+AI" transforms the intelligent digital cockpit and brings a new driving experience

5G can drive the intelligent exchange and sharing of information between cars and people, cars, roads, and the cloud, enabling cars to have functions such as complex environment perception, intelligent decision-making, and collaborative control, becoming "smart cars"; and the rapid development of AI technology and the continuous improvement of computing power in the 5G era have enabled cars to have situational awareness safety, natural interaction, ultra-high-definition entertainment and other capabilities, becoming "cars that understand users better", better understand users' travel and entertainment needs, and transform the driving experience.

Currently, Qualcomm has won information, audio, video and digital cockpit projects from 19 of the world's leading automakers. Over the years, Qualcomm has provided cars with a new level of computing performance in the field of digital cockpits through the Snapdragon 820A and 602A automotive platforms. Among them, the Snapdragon 820A digital cockpit platform supports computer vision and machine learning, can provide rich graphics and multimedia functions, coupled with a wide range of visualization and operating system options and neural processing engines, to help automakers create differentiated features and provide excellent user experience.

In January 2019, Qualcomm launched the automotive industry’s first AI-powered, scalable digital cockpit platform - the third-generation Snapdragon Automotive Digital Cockpit Platform, which includes three levels: performance, flagship and supreme. It brings a new level of computing and smart car solutions to multiple levels of vehicles, helping the industry create a breakthrough driving experience.

Smart connected cars are heading towards the 5G era, ushering in a new era of future travel

According to the 5G Economy report, by 2035, 5G will create more than $2.4 trillion in total economic output for the automotive industry, its supply chain, and its customers, accounting for almost one-fifth of the expected global economic impact of 5G. As a leading wireless technology innovator, Qualcomm provides the industry with a leading and rich product technology portfolio for the growing connectivity needs of automobiles, including cellular modems, Wi-Fi and Bluetooth connections, global navigation satellite systems and high-precision positioning solutions, software and infotainment platforms, etc.

In February 2019, Qualcomm launched the new Snapdragon Automotive 4G Platform and 5G Platform to support automakers, Tier 1 suppliers, and roadside infrastructure customers to develop faster, safer, and differentiated products for the next generation of connected cars. The Snapdragon Automotive 4G and 5G Platforms support C-V2X direct communication, high-precision multi-frequency global navigation satellite system (HP-GNSS), and support key frequency bands of major global operators through RF front-end functions, which can provide strong support for rich in-vehicle experiences, including dual-SIM dual-pass (supported by the Snapdragon Automotive 5G Platform), high-precision positioning with lane-level navigation accuracy, multi-gigabit cloud connectivity, V2V and V2I communications for automotive safety, and large-bandwidth, low-latency remote operations, each of which is a key requirement for automotive safety, convoy formation, autonomous driving, and always-connected driving experience.

In addition, Qualcomm offers a scalable portfolio of advanced Wi-Fi and Bluetooth products for almost all vehicle types, including: Qualcomm Automotive Wi-Fi 6 dual MAC chip QCA6696, Qualcomm Automotive Wi-Fi 5 and Bluetooth combo chip QCA6595AU, and Qualcomm Automotive Wi-Fi 5 single MAC chip QCA6574AU.

High-performance computing and terminal-side AI will become important technologies to transform future cars. Based on years of research and development in the field of autonomous driving, Qualcomm launched the Snapdragon Ride platform for advanced driver assistance systems (ADAS) and autonomous driving in January 2020. Through the industry-leading, scalable and open platform, it provides automakers with solutions for different segments of autonomous driving systems to accelerate the deployment and implementation of autonomous driving. In August this year, Qualcomm and Veoneer announced a collaboration to deliver scalable advanced driver assistance systems and collaborative autonomous driving (AD) solutions, using the Qualcomm Snapdragon Ride ADAS/AD scalable system-level SoC combination and accelerator with Veoneer's perception and driving strategy software stack to create an open platform for Tier 1 suppliers and automakers, and support mass-produced cars in 2024.

Over the past nearly 20 years, Qualcomm has continuously improved the driving experience and promoted changes in the automotive industry through basic technological innovations and leading solutions. Currently, more than 100 million cars in the world use Qualcomm's automotive solutions. Currently, Qualcomm's automotive business focuses on four key areas: in-vehicle networking and C-V2X, digital cockpits, ADAS and autonomous driving, and cloud-side terminal management. Qualcomm's innovation and cooperation results in the automotive field have also been recognized by authoritative organizations in the industry. In August this year, Qualcomm won the "Industry Choice Award - Automotive Technology Company of the Year". The award was awarded by TU-Automotive, an organization under Informa Tech Automotive Group, and aims to recognize the most innovative companies in the field of automotive technology this year.

Today, the entire automotive ecosystem is moving towards the future of smart transportation, with integrated communications and transportation networks at its core to create positive economic and social effects. Qualcomm is at the forefront of this change with its strong 5G roadmap, proven AI capabilities, and a wide range of enabling technologies. With the joint efforts of industry-leading automotive partners such as Qualcomm, a new era of safe, efficient, and intelligent future travel is gradually being realized.