Huawei creates dreams, Yu Chengdong builds cars

“Wherever you want to go, HUAWEI Wenjie Auto will always accompany you!”

On March 8, the new slogan “HUAWEI Wenjie” appeared for the first time on AITO Auto and Huawei Terminal official platform. As there are more and more partners, Yu Chengdong wants to build an ecological brand so that Huawei's costs can be effectively controlled and consumers will no longer be confused when making choices.

On the morning of March 31, Huawei internally issued the "Resolution on Huawei Not Building Cars", which was personally signed by Mr. Ren Zhengfei. It once again emphasized that Huawei will not build cars and is valid for 5 years.

At Huawei’s 2022 annual report meeting that afternoon, Xu Zhijun, who was about to hand over the rotating chairmanship to Meng Wanzhou, further explained: “This 5-year period is not just 5 years, but the final year of all our documents. The long validity period is 5 years.”

“Some of our departments, some individuals, or some partners are abusing Huawei’s brand. Huawei has built a brand over the past 30 years and will not be abused at will. , and there are no cars of any brand." Xu Zhijun said in a joking tone.

To B and to C are both good and bad, and building cars and not building cars are ebbing and flowing. Huawei's road to "building cars" sometimes really looks like a TV series, with ups and downs and unpredictable plots.

Looking back at Huawei’s “car-making” history, it has been about four years since 2019. Since entering the automotive industry, Huawei has determined to be an enabler of the industry and help car companies build good cars.

After years of development, there are currently three cooperation models between Huawei and car companies, namely the parts supply model, the HI model and the smart car selection model, with the depth of cooperation increasing step by step.

During the development process, some of Huawei’s internal “contradictions” have gradually become known to the outside world. How to start the automobile business?

One is represented by Xu Zhijun. Huawei should insist on to B and be an incremental component supplier for the automotive industry. Just like the parts supply mode and HI mode among the above three modes.

The other is represented by Yu Chengdong. Huawei should stop building cars in order to subvert the industry and gain control of the C-side. Just like the smart car selection mode and the AITO car that Yu Chengdong shouts about in this mode.

As early as October 2020, Huawei internally issued the "Resolution on the Management of Smart Automotive Components Business". It must adhere to Huawei's strategy of not building cars, and then recommend that car manufacturers be transferred from the company.

Xu Zhijun once revealed that Huawei organized an internal vote, and the votes in favor of "building a car" and "not building a car" were 1 and 6 respectively. Needless to say, that 1 vote is Yu Chengdong.

Huawei once again emphasizes that it will not build cars. The most sad and aggrieved person is none other than Yu Chengdong. Otherwise, he would not have left a message under the post that made it clear for the first time that "Huawei does not build cars" published in October 2020 on the night when the "Resolution on Huawei Not Building Cars" was released: These times have changed. This will only make it harder for us! After a few years, everyone will understand! Leave time to test it! Only with in-depth insight and understanding of an industry can we grasp the right direction! Mark it and come back to see it in a few years!

The two paragraphs are sincere, revealing Yu Chengdong's aggrievedness and unwillingness. The key is, when the last resolution is still valid for half a year, why is Huawei so eager to renew it?

Under the leadership of Yu Chengdong, the smart car selection model can be roughly divided into three stages. Reflected in the product and publicity levels, they are the Cyrus SF5 stage, the Wenjie M5/M7 stage, and the "HUAWEI Wenjie" slogan stage.

The first phase is a small trial. Huawei has upgraded the software and experience of the Cyrus SF5 and sold it through Huawei stores; the second phase is a drastic step, using Huawei as the main definition of the car to make the world M5 has been greatly improved in terms of design, quality, and experience; the third stage can be said to be a change of direction, and "HUAWEI Wenjie" is on the market, emphasizing the strong correlation between Huawei and Wenjie.

The three stages are progressive, especially the "HUAWEI Wenjie" that died less than a month after its launch. It is not only Yu Chengdong's response to the declining sales of Wenjie, but also his response to "Huawei's failure to A tentative move to build a car” strategy.

After all, the former "million-dollar luxury cars" and "beyond million-dollar luxury cars" suddenly lost speed in 2023 after a total of 75,000 vehicles were delivered in 2022, and price reductions cannot bring them back. . As a fanatical car builder, how could Yu Chengdong just sit idly by?

The result is obvious, Yu Chengdong was "beaten" by Ren Zhengfei.

In Yu Chengdong’s words, in the eyes of sales staff, and in the eyes of consumers, both the Wenjie M5 and M7 are “Huawei’s cars.” But after all, they haven't used Huawei's logo yet, and Ren Zhengfei, Xu Zhijun, etc. can accept it.

But "HUAWEI asks the world" is different. This is Huawei's red line. The so-called red line refers to Huawei's internal caution in building cars in the current environment caused by various factors such as financial pressure, unwarranted suppression, and brand value.

However, I have no doubt that at a suitable and appropriate moment, Huawei will become less cautious.

Let’s talk about the “Resolution on Huawei not to build cars” announcement. It seems strict, but in fact it is a beating.

After writing two unwilling paragraphs on the evening of March 31, Yu Chengdong appeared on time at the China Electric Vehicles 100 Forum (2023) on April 1.

Changing from yesterday’s haze, at the meeting that attracted much attention from the media and industry, Yu Chengdong reappeared as a “big mouth”: “The internal senior management did not agree with the exposure of the ‘Huawei’ brand. Although there was a change in the statement, Huawei helped The essence of companies building good cars has not changed."

The dispute between building cars and not building cars is said to be the difference between Yu Chengdong and Xu Zhijun. To be more specific, it is actually the "disagreement" between Yu Chengdong and Wang Jun.

Huawei Automotive BU was established in May 2019. At that time, it was tied to the four major BGs and belonged to the same first-level department. Wang Jun was the president and reported to Xu Zhijun.

In October 2020, Huawei’s automotive BU was transferred from the ICT business to the consumer business. In May 2021, Yu Chengdong concurrently served as CheBU CEO, and Wang Jun was transferred to CheBU COO, reporting to Yu Chengdong.

After taking over the car BU, Yu Chengdong proposed the smart car selection model, and only then did he have the slick Huawei Smart Selection SF5 and the radical Wenjie M5/M7. But at the same time, the parts supply model and HI model led by Wang Jun are also advancing at the same time.

“The people in charge of Weilai and Lili, who are also here today, are unlikely to choose Huawei in terms of intelligence, because they will have their own pursuits. Multinational car giants will also be sanctioned because Huawei is Therefore, companies will not choose us. And if traditional car companies are afraid of losing their 'soul', they will also not choose Huawei." Yu Chengdong said in a few words, with endless bitterness.

“The HI model originally had three customers, but now there is only one left.” Indeed, Jihu is rarely mentioned by anyone at this stage. The cooperation with Aian has been downgraded, and only Avita is left. , becoming the hope of the whole village.

To be fair, it’s not that the HI model is bad, nor that the to B route is unworkable. It’s just that under the leadership of different organizations, the cost-effectiveness of the HI model is not outstanding.

Feng Xingya, general manager of Guangzhou Automobile Group, complained that it is not cheap to buy in a package, and there are many things that cannot be selected. Xiao Yong, deputy general manager of GAC Aion, once said: "Huawei is a relatively big-name supplier. Although the quality of parts is good, the price is also uncontrolled. There is basically no bargaining power when working with Huawei."

BAIC has also complained that the cockpit, which is very attractive to the market, cannot be had after buying the full stack. The cold knowledge behind it is that the smart cockpit belongs to Yu Chengdong’s consumer BG management, and smart driving belongs to Wang Jun’s car BU management.

Yu Chengdong said: "If the models using Huawei's smart solutions do not achieve a certain sales volume, commercial benefits will not be realized. Therefore, Huawei hopes to better cooperate closely with the OEMs to achieve *** Win."

In September 2022, Ren Zhengfei sent an internal speech to everyone.

Regarding the automotive business, this is what I said at the time: We cannot roll out a complete front. We need to reduce the scientific research budget and strengthen the closed-loop business. R&D should take a modular path and focus on a few key components to achieve competitiveness. The remaining parts can be compared with others. connect.

What Ren Zhengfei calls a closed business loop is the HI model led by Wang Jun. For Huawei, the HI model has relatively high investment and low output, and cannot well alleviate Huawei's current profit dilemma.

To B or to C, Huawei may still be wavering strategically, but it has already made a choice in terms of personnel. In February 2023, it was revealed that Wang Jun had been suspended, but there was no official response.

Although the above cannot make Huawei's automotive business profitable immediately, it can at least free it from the previous tight state. It will be of great benefit to Huawei itself and its partners.

In the past, Yu Chengdong only dedicated himself to shouting for the world, but with the change of responsibilities and powers, he campaigned for the launch of the Alpha S Huawei HI version, and also visited Avita with Xu Zhijun, accompanied by Tan Benhong. In addition, Avita 11 has also begun to enter Huawei flagship stores.

Although he has been beaten, Yu Chengdong still holds great power over Huawei's automotive business.

In 2022, Huawei achieved global sales revenue of 642.3 billion yuan, a year-on-year increase of 0.9; net profit of 35.6 billion yuan, a year-on-year decrease of 6.87%; operating cash flow of 17.8 billion yuan, a year-on-year decrease of 7.02%; net cash 176.3 billion yuan , down 26.9 year-on-year.

The sanctions have become increasingly stringent, putting great pressure on Huawei's performance. Perhaps in the eyes of many people, it was because of the unwarranted sanctions imposed by beautiful countries that Huawei started to enter the automobile industry.

In fact, this is not the case. The automotive industry is transforming towards electrification, intelligence, and connectivity. As a world-leading technology company, Huawei's technology accumulation coincides with the development trend of the industry.

When the carrier of technological innovation gradually shifts from mobile phones to cars, cross-border "car manufacturing" has become an opportunity and choice that every technology giant cannot miss. This is the case for Huawei, as well as for Apple, Baidu, Xiaomi, etc. .

The unwarranted sanctions have only accelerated Huawei’s entry into the automotive industry.

For entering the market but not building cars, Huawei gave three reasons at that time: first, it needed too much capital; second, it had made too many enemies, which might affect partnerships in other businesses, such as 5G technology; third, it had too many enemies. Huawei wants to be an enabler of the industry and help car companies build good cars.

How to empower?

From software to hardware, from smart cockpit to assisted driving, from vehicle design to sales...Today, Huawei has demonstrated a rich set of automotive solutions that are almost "complete car manufacturing".

Based on Huawei's ecosystem, as long as you have dreams and funds, Huawei can help you create a car with strength and potential. Huawei's dream is to become the world's number one in its automotive business and to help its partners become the world's number one.

The current problem is that strategically, Huawei has chosen not to build cars. It must continue to help car companies build good cars and become an incremental parts supplier. But in terms of execution, Huawei has handed over full power of its automotive business to Yu Chengdong, a car-making fanatic.

Whether it is building a car or not, Huawei should think clearly.

If Huawei is determined not to build cars, then Huawei should step back a few more positions and effectively fulfill its role and positioning as a supplier. Instead of doing Party B's work and taking care of Party A's heart, it is always regarded as "soul-stealing" by car companies.

However, Huawei’s own HI model has not succeeded in this way, nor has Baidu’s Apollo ecosystem.

In the past, Baidu Apollo’s goal was the same as Huawei’s, to help car companies build good cars. But in the end, Baidu took the lead in building Jidu Auto. Robin Li once explained: Traditional car companies are very conservative and insufficiently receptive to new technologies, so we need to take the initiative and provide a reference for the market.

“Because in the past, traditional first-tier suppliers could develop the same system for many manufacturers to use, but using the supplier’s software solution, the iteration speed could not keep up with today’s competition, so we have to do it ourselves. research.

"At the China Electric Vehicles 100 People Forum (2023), Li Xiang's speech may also represent the aspirations of most car companies.

If Huawei is determined to build cars, then Huawei should also move forward quickly. After all, five years later , or maybe within five years, whether from the perspective of Huawei's own industrial situation or the perspective of new energy development, Huawei will not be allowed to build cars again.

This article comes from the author of Yichehao. The copyright of choosing a car belongs to the author. Please contact the author for any form of reproduction. The content only represents the author’s opinion and has nothing to do with Bitauto