BMW & Momenta to develop ADAS tech for Chinese EVs

BMW has teamed up with the Chinese company Momenta, a specialist in AI-supported autonomous driving technologies, in order to shine with an improved driver assistance system in China. The first products from the partnership are to be used there from the 'Neue Klasse' onwards.

BMW emphasises that the cooperation focuses exclusively on the Chinese market and is intended to expand its own presence “in China’s digital innovation environment.” In other words, BMW wants to remain competitive in the rapidly developing ADAS technologies in the People’s Republic. Momenta is to help develop innovative driver assistants specifically for the BMW portfolio there, starting with the Neue Klasse, which is to be built in China from 2026.

According to BMW, the partnership will focus on software development and integration (‘specifically designed for Chinese road networks, traffic conditions and user expectations’). This will be done using advanced AI algorithms and data-driven development approaches. Dr Mihiar Ayoubi, Senior Vice President, Driving Experience, BMW Group, commented: “This collaboration of partners sharing the same mindset, will enable us to offer our customers in China a very unique automated driving experience. We are combining 20+ years of pioneering safety with locally trained driving knowledge and state of the art Chinese AI technology.”

According to the German business publication Handelsblatt, the system envisaged with Momenta will initially cover motorways and urban roads and will be used in several models. Momenta is one of the few companies in China to have a licence for mapping high-definition road maps; a key tool for autonomous driving, writes the business newspaper.

We are familiar with Momenta from the announced cooperation with Uber. Both sides want to work together on the introduction of autonomous vehicles on the Uber platform in international markets outside the USA and China, initially in Europe from the beginning of 2026. Xudong Cao, CEO of Momenta, said on the occasion of the Uber cooperation in May that his company has already “established strong partnerships with the most innovative compute platform providers, and globally leading OEMs.” And that its own robotaxi technology can be efficiently integrated into standard vehicle platforms.

bmwgroup.com, handelsblatt.com (in German)