Self-driving sector gains momentum

5G tech, government's guidance and support boost industry's development

BEIJING－From carrying out test runs on closed roads to transporting passengers in cities, China's self-driving industry took a big step forward in 2019, attracting more foreign manufacturers.

The Chinese government's guidance and support have promoted the rapid development of this sector, said Gao Qianqian, an official from the China Association of Automobile Manufacturers.

Self-driving cars have to maintain stable connections with base stations to enable monitoring of their operational status, which requires a large amount of data exchange. With the 5G network, the delay is within a few tens of milliseconds, said Han Xu, CEO of China's smart mobility company WeRide.