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The former autonomous driving unit at DJI, the world’s largest drone maker, is gearing up to serve the heavy vehicle industry in 2026, in the latest example of Chinese innovation spilling over from Big Tech firms to start-ups.
Chinese self-driving tech firm ZYT plans to move into heavy-duty lorries and unmanned logistics vehicles, expanding its footprint from city streets to highways, as the race for commercialisation intensifies in the sector.
The Shenzhen-based company, known as Zhuoyu, will introduce its navigate-on-autopilot feature to lorries on highways. Mass production is slated for the first half of 2026, CEO Shen Shaojie said on Tuesday.
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The company has secured Xuzhou Construction Machinery Group, Shaanxi Automobile Group and China National Heavy Duty Truck Group as its first batch of trucking partners.
As a manufacturer of both intelligent driving systems and components, ZYT had “an inherent advantage in transferring the technology from passenger cars, which have massive scale and high quality standards, to other sectors”, Shen said at an event to celebrate the company’s 10th anniversary.
ZYT CEO Shen Shaojie speaking at the 10th anniversary event. Photo: Handout alt=ZYT CEO Shen Shaojie speaking at the 10th anniversary event. Photo: Handout>
He added that ZYT would launch in January a partnership with a top Chinese commercial vehicle maker to design unmanned logistics vehicles using the company’s autonomous driving tech.
The latest moves mean ZYT is opening up new battlefronts in a fiercely contested autonomous driving landscape in China, competing against heavyweights such as Horizon Robotics as well as Shenzhen Yinwang Intelligent Technology, the smart car unit that spun off from Huawei Technologies last year.
As ZYT enters the lucrative logistics market in search of new growth, it will challenge established rivals such as Pony.ai, which last month announced plans to mass produce and deploy autonomous trucks in 2026.
Since its establishment in 2016 as DJI’s automotive division, ZYT has been focused on the passenger car sector.
The unit was spun off in 2023 after the expanding autonomous driving team deviated from DJI’s core drone business. Shen also cited the intensifying geopolitical tensions between China and the US as a catalyst for the separation.
DJI has been added to several blacklists by the US government, which restricted its access to US technologies and business dealings with American companies.
“How can a research and development team raised in a greenhouse transfer into an independent entity … responsible for its own profits and losses … and thrive in the complex capital and industry dynamics?” Shen said on Tuesday. “The challenge was immense, undoubtedly, but we made it.”
Components from ZYT’s self-driving systems on display. Photo: Handout alt=Components from ZYT’s self-driving systems on display. Photo: Handout>
In September, Chinese carmaker FAW acquired 35.8 per cent of ZYT to become its largest shareholder, while DJI held 34 per cent. FAW invested more than 3.6 billion yuan (US$510 million) in ZYT in November, pushing the firm’s valuation to over 10 billion yuan.
ZYT has grown rapidly in recent years with its focus on providing a low-cost solution for high-level intelligence, in contrast with the broader market’s race for higher computing power.
Leveraging its roots in drone technology, ZYT uses stereo vision and algorithm efficiency to deliver Level 2+ self-driving capabilities on low-power semiconductors. It also aims to differentiate itself from rivals with an autonomous driving system that works for both electric and fuel-based vehicles.
The company said it was now working with nine carmakers on more than 50 mass-produced models.
This article originally appeared in the South China Morning Post (SCMP), the most authoritative voice reporting on China and Asia for more than a century. For more SCMP stories, please explore the SCMP app or visit the SCMP’s Facebook and Twitter pages. Copyright © 2025 South China Morning Post Publishers Ltd. All rights reserved.
Copyright (c) 2025. South China Morning Post Publishers Ltd. All rights reserved.