On February 20, 2025, Huawei at the HIMA MAEXTRO Technology Conference, the MAEXTRO S800 model came to us, which is the official release day of the top luxury car jointly created by Huawei and JAC, with a pre-sale price of 100-1.5 million yuan. With a number of black technologies, this car has once again become a new star in the million-level luxury car market, which has once again aroused great attention and discussion from the industry and consumers. So, will the S800 be able to rewrite the pattern of the million-level luxury car market with its technical advantages? China Exportsemi will conduct in-depth analysis from the aspects of technical highlights, market prospects and industry impact.
1. Technical highlights: Enabled by six black technologies to create the ultimate luxury experience
(1) Turing Dragon Architecture: the revolution of intelligent chassis
The Turing Dragon Architecture is the world's first autonomous intelligent digital chassis platform, which adopts a global fusion architecture, supports a variety of power combinations, and covers an output range of 480-1300+ horsepower, and is suitable for sedans, SUVs, MPVs and other models. The platform integrates the four core capabilities of active perception, central control, intelligent reasoning and self-learning, and realizes the "six-in-one" collaborative control of body, power, suspension, steering, braking and thermal management. In complex road conditions, the Huawei ADS system uses the advanced scanning and perception network prediction of Huawei's ADS system to respond quickly, and even if the front wheel bursts at a high speed of 120 km/h, the vehicle can maintain a stable straight drive with a response delay of less than 0.2 seconds. In addition, the addition of 16° rear-wheel steering technology makes the turning radius of the MAEXTRO S800 as low as 3.37 meters, and the handling performance is comparable to that of an A0-class car.
(2) Angel active safety protection system: all-round security guarantee
The Angel Active Safety Protection System is equipped with 4 lidars, 11 cameras and a distributed millimeter-wave radar matrix to build an all-round and three-dimensional perception network. In adverse weather conditions, such as rain, fog, sand and dust, the detection range can be increased by 60%, and it can identify invisible vehicles and automatically brake to avoid collisions. At the same time, the system can also predict the risk of front and rear pinching, automatically steer to avoid danger, tighten the seat belt and adjust the seat posture before the collision, and call the rescue call and report information after the collision.
(3) Huawei Galaxy Communications: A communication network that integrates space and earth
Huawei's Galaxy communication system is the world's first autonomous intelligent in-vehicle communication system, which supports dual-network dual-standby and satellite communication sharing, and can maintain satellite calls even when 30 meters away from the car. The system also improves network coverage, and can actively preload maps in weak network environments to ensure smooth navigation.
(4) HarmonyOS ALPS cockpit 2.0: forest-level intelligent purification
HarmonyOS ALPS cockpit 2.0 realizes forest-level intelligent purification through a double-layer air circulation system and adsorption of degradable materials, with an inhibition rate of more than 99% for influenza A and coronavirus, and a purification rate of 92% for harmful gases. In addition, the cockpit is also equipped with 2.6 million pixel intelligent interactive headlights, which support a variety of light interaction functions, and are linked with Huawei ADS to realize information interaction between the car and the outside world.
(5) Huawei's voice-activated 2.0: A new level of intelligent interaction
Huawei's voice-activated 2.0 is equipped with 2.6 million pixel intelligent interactive headlights, which support a variety of light interaction functions, and are linked with Huawei ADS to realize information interaction between the car and the outside world. For example, if the driver is disabled, the vehicle can automatically pull over and use the headlights to project an SOS signal.
(6) Huawei Whale Battery 2.0: A Revolution in Charging Speed
Huawei Whale Battery 2.0 uses CATL's Kirin battery technology, which has the advantages of high energy density and safety performance. The battery adopts CTP design, and the battery cells are directly placed into the battery pack, which has high space utilization and excellent battery life. The extended-range version is equipped with an 800V high-voltage 6C battery pack, which can be charged from 10% to 80% in just 10.5 minutes, while the pure electric version uses a 5C battery with the highest energy density and a peak energy charge of 1 km per second.
Pictured: Huawei's top-of-the-line luxury car MAEXTRO S800 was officially released at the HIMA MAEXTRO Technology Conference
2. Market prospects: challenges and opportunities coexist
(1) The challenge of brand recognition
Although Huawei has made some achievements in the field of smart cars, its brand recognition in the luxury car market is still far behind that of traditional luxury brands such as Rolls-Royce, Bentley and Maybach. Consumer acceptance and trust in a new brand takes time to build. According to the survey report of Intelligence Research Group, the scale of China's intelligent driving industry continued to rise from 2014 to 2023, and it has reached 312 billion yuan in 2023, a year-on-year increase of 15.77%. This shows that consumers' acceptance of smart cars is increasing, but Huawei still needs to strengthen brand building and marketing to enhance the brand recognition of the S800.
(2) Opportunities for market competition
The luxury car market is highly competitive, and traditional brands have a deep heritage in design, craftsmanship and brand heritage. However, with the rapid development of intelligent driving technology, consumer demand is also increasing. With its superior technical prowess and innovative design, the S800 is expected to occupy a place in the luxury car market. According to the latest data, in January 2025, Huawei's sales of HIMA in the Chinese market have exceeded 30,000 units, of which the sales volume of the M7 has reached more than 200,000 units, becoming the sales champion among the new car-making forces in 2024. This shows that Huawei has strong competitiveness in the smart car market and provides a good foundation for the marketing of the S800.
(3) Balance of price positioning
The pre-sale price of the S800 is 100-1.5 million yuan, which is a price range in which consumers have extremely high requirements for brand and quality. Huawei needs to find a balance between price and value to attract more consumers. According to the forecast of analysts at the Gasgoo Automotive Research Institute, the annual sales of the S800 are expected to reach 18,000 units, with an average of 1,500 units per month. This sales forecast shows that the S800 has a certain competitiveness in the market, but Huawei still needs to continuously improve product quality and service levels to meet the needs of consumers.
3. Industry impact: Promote the development of intelligent vehicle technology and lead the transformation of the luxury car market
(1) The leadership of technological innovation
The launch of the S800 demonstrates Huawei's technical strength in the field of intelligent vehicles, especially breakthroughs in intelligent chassis, battery technology, and communication technology. These technological innovations will promote the development of the entire industry and prompt other manufacturers to accelerate the pace of technological upgrading. For example, the global convergence architecture and intelligent inference suspension technology of the Turing Dragon Architecture platform provide new ideas for the chassis design of intelligent vehicles. Huawei Whale Battery 2.0's 800V high-voltage extended-range 6C battery pack technology also sets a new benchmark for the development of battery technology.
Figure: The Huawei MAEXTRO S800 blessed by black technology is here
(2) The popularization of intelligent driving
The S800 supports L3 autonomous driving architecture, combined with Huawei's ADS4.0 technology, to achieve end-to-end human-like intelligent driving that can be driven and stopped in a position across the country. This will accelerate the popularization of intelligent driving technology and enhance consumers' trust and acceptance of intelligent driving. According to the survey report of Zhiyan Consulting, the scale of China's intelligent driving industry continued to rise from 2014 to 2023, and it has reached 312 billion yuan in 2023, a year-on-year increase of 15.77%. This shows that the market demand for intelligent driving technology is expanding, and Huawei's MAEXTRO S800 will play an important leading role in this field.
(3) Demonstration of industrial cooperation
The cooperation model between Huawei and JAC provides new ideas for the development of smart cars. Through the combination of technology and manufacturing, both parties can give full play to their respective advantages and jointly promote the development of smart vehicles. Yu Chengdong, Executive Director of Huawei, Chairman of the Board of Directors of the Device BG, and Chairman of the Board of Directors of the Intelligent Vehicle Solution BU, said that the S800 was the first to launch Huawei's top black technology, and the design concept is derived from the sixth-generation aircraft concept and 8S design standards, with super cruise, super maneuverability, super information perception, super privacy, space-ground networking, artificial intelligence assistance, active protection system, and ultra-reliability. This cooperation model not only helps to improve the technical content of products, but also provides a reference for other car companies.
4. Conclusion
The release of the Huawei S800 marks the deep integration of intelligent technology in the field of luxury cars. With its superior technical prowess and innovative design, the S800 is poised to occupy a place in the luxury car market. However, brand recognition and competition in the market remain challenges. In the future, Huawei needs to continue to strengthen brand building and user experience to stand out from the fierce market competition. At the same time, the technological innovation of the S800 will also have a profound impact on the entire industry, promote the rapid development of intelligent vehicle technology, and lead the transformation of the luxury car market.
