Core Viewpoint - Black Sesame Intelligence (2533.HK) experienced a significant intraday increase of over 9%, reaching HKD 21.38, driven by insights shared at the 7th World New Energy Vehicle Conference regarding the upcoming market explosion in cross-domain integration and the maturation of L3 autonomous driving technology within the next three to five years [1] Group 1: Company Developments - The Chief Marketing Officer, Yang Yuxin, highlighted that the entire industry chain will become more organized, with manufacturers that possess mature mass production experience, sustainable technology iteration, and customer recognition standing out [1] - Black Sesame Intelligence has developed two major chip series, Huashan and Wudang, to cover different computing power needs, achieving breakthroughs from technology to mass production [1] - The company plans to launch a robotics product line, aiming to transfer the technology, successful experiences, and ecosystem accumulated in the automotive sector to new markets [1] Group 2: Industry Insights - The next three to five years are expected to be critical for the maturation of L3 autonomous driving technology, indicating a pivotal moment for the industry [1] - The integration of smart automotive technology and robotics is anticipated to accelerate, with high-performance, energy-efficient automotive-grade AI chips at the core of this transition [1]

Core Viewpoint - Horizon Robotics is experiencing rapid revenue growth in its automotive product solutions, with significant increases in both volume and pricing, and is expected to maintain a "buy" rating due to upcoming product launches and successful overseas expansion [1] Group 1: Financial Performance - In H1 2025, Horizon Robotics' automotive product solutions revenue reached 778 million yuan, representing a year-on-year increase of 250%; gross margin was 45.6%, up by 3.9 percentage points [2] - The shipment volume of the company's vehicle-grade Journey series processing hardware reached 1.98 million units, doubling year-on-year; shipments of hardware supporting highway-assisted driving reached 980,000 units, accounting for 49.5% of total shipments, which is six times the amount from the same period last year [2] - The market share for basic and overall assisted driving solutions in China is leading, at 45.8% and 32.4% respectively, with 400 new model designations accumulated, including over 100 models with highway-assisted driving capabilities [2] Group 2: Product Development and Partnerships - The company is closely collaborating with global partners to develop the new generation of basic assisted driving solutions, Horizon Mono, based on the Journey 6B processor, and has secured model designations from two Japanese automakers for markets outside China [3] - The partnership with overseas automakers is expected to yield over 7.5 million units in lifetime shipments, with nine joint venture automakers in China designating 30 models for the company's solutions, some of which are set to begin production by the end of 2025 [3] - The successful collaboration with the Volkswagen Group has further enhanced the company's international product layout and global brand influence [3]

Core Insights - The company reported a total revenue of 1.567 billion yuan for the first half of 2025, representing a year-on-year increase of 67.6%, but incurred an adjusted net loss of 1.33 billion yuan compared to a loss of 804 million yuan in the same period last year [1] Revenue Breakdown - Revenue from products and solutions reached 778 million yuan, a year-on-year increase of 350%, while software and licensing services generated 738 million yuan, up 6.9% [1] - The delivery volume of products and solutions approached 2 million units, marking a year-on-year growth of approximately 100%, driven by the mass production of the Zhengcheng 6 series [1] - Mid-to-high-end product shipments totaled 980,000 units, accounting for 49.5% of total shipments, with a year-on-year increase of six times [1] - Mid-to-high-end products contributed over 80% of the revenue from products and solutions [1] - The average selling price of automotive products and solutions reached 1.7 times that of the same period last year [1] Innovation and International Expansion - The company has achieved a record number of designated models, with nearly 400 models cumulatively, including over 100 mid-to-high-end products equipped with highway-assisted driving and above [1] - The HSD has secured designations for over 10 models from multiple OEMs, with plans for mass production in the second half of 2025 [1] - The company has made breakthroughs in internationalization, obtaining designations for 30 domestic models from 9 joint venture automakers and designations for overseas models from 2 foreign automakers, with expected total deliveries exceeding 7.5 million units [1]

Group 1 - Five companies from Wuhan have become the first in their respective sectors to go public in 2024 [2] - The first company, Dameng Data, listed on the Shanghai Stock Exchange's Sci-Tech Innovation Board on June 12, 2024, and is a leading provider of database products and services in China [4] - The second company, Xingjing Weiwang Group, listed on NASDAQ on July 26, 2024, and operates in the digital entertainment sector, including esports and gaming [6][7] Group 2 - The third company, Shengtong Technology, established in 2005, focuses on AI solutions for urban management, automotive, and finance sectors, and is headquartered in Wuhan as of 2024 [10] - The fourth company, Hezhima Intelligent, specializes in automotive-grade smart chips and solutions, with its valuation increasing from under $1 billion to over $2 billion in three years [15] - The listing of these companies highlights Wuhan's growing prominence in various high-tech industries [2][4][10][15]

Group 1 - The core viewpoint emphasizes the integration of technological innovation, industrial upgrading, and capital empowerment to promote the cultivation of companies for listing in Hubei [1] - Hubei has a significant number of high-tech enterprises and specialized small and medium-sized enterprises, with a total of 1,355 "gold and silver seed" companies reserved for potential listing [1] - The province has established a comprehensive cultivation system for companies, including a full-chain service mechanism for value discovery, standardized cultivation, financing connection, and listing support [1] Group 2 - Hubei's new implementation plan aims to create a "data + industry" mechanism for precise selection and dynamic management of companies for listing, with differentiated admission standards for technology-driven and specialized enterprises [2] - The province will provide a combination of "step-by-step cultivation + customized guidance" services tailored to the different stages of development, industry characteristics, and financing needs of enterprises [2] - The Hubei Provincial Enterprise Listing Development Promotion Association has made significant achievements in organizing training, research visits, and investment roadshows to enhance the quality of listed companies and promote healthy capital market development [2]

Core Viewpoint - Wuhan is accelerating the construction of a technology finance system that aligns with technological innovation, aiming to establish itself as a national technology finance center by 2027 through a comprehensive action plan [1][2]. Group 1: Action Plan Overview - The action plan outlines five major actions: nurturing patient capital, improving technology credit quality, building a multi-level capital market, risk compensation sharing, and optimizing the technology finance ecosystem [2]. - By 2027, Wuhan plans to establish over 50 specialized technology finance institutions and achieve a scale of over 300 billion yuan in equity investment funds and over 500 billion yuan in loans to technology enterprises [2]. Group 2: Government Investment Fund Role - The action plan emphasizes the role of government investment funds in guiding technology finance, with a focus on nurturing patient capital [3][4]. - Wuhan has integrated two government industry funds, which have collectively participated in the establishment of 111 funds and invested over 20.4 billion yuan, attracting over 83.4 billion yuan in social capital [4]. Group 3: Technology Credit Expansion - The action plan aims to enhance the technology credit service system by encouraging banks to establish specialized technology finance institutions and improve credit access for technology enterprises [7][8]. - As of June 11, 2023, Wuhan has issued 36.563 billion yuan in knowledge value credit loans to 4,287 technology enterprises, with plans to further innovate credit products [9]. Group 4: Multi-Level Capital Market Development - Wuhan is committed to developing a multi-level capital market, supporting the listing of technology enterprises through a structured nurturing approach [10][11]. - The city has seen significant progress in nurturing companies for capital market competition, with eight new domestic and foreign listed companies in 2024 [11]. Group 5: Mergers, Acquisitions, and Bond Financing - The action plan supports mergers and acquisitions for technology enterprises, allowing up to 80% loan coverage for controlling acquisitions [12]. - Since the introduction of the bond market "technology board" policy, Wuhan has successfully issued 172 billion yuan in technology innovation bonds, with 12 enterprises participating [13].

Core Insights - The article discusses the evolving landscape of China's automotive market, highlighting the shift towards cost reduction and technological upgrades, particularly in the realm of advanced driver assistance systems (ADAS) [1][3] - Black Sesame Intelligence is positioned as a key player in promoting the democratization of intelligent driving technology, aiming to make high-level ADAS accessible to more affordable vehicle models [4][5] Industry Trends - The automotive industry is experiencing a transformation where high-level ADAS is moving towards lower-priced models, with a focus on cost-effective solutions amid a competitive pricing environment [3][4] - The transition from distributed electronic architectures to domain control and central computing platforms is a significant trend, enabling enhanced performance and scalability for future vehicle upgrades [5][6] Company Strategy - Black Sesame Intelligence emphasizes two main strategies: aligning with the evolution of automotive electronic architectures and ensuring their chip designs are future-proof and compatible [4][5] - The company aims to build an open and collaborative ecosystem for ADAS, working with partners across the supply chain to lower development barriers and accelerate technology deployment [4][5] Product Development - The Huashan A1000 chip is noted as the first domestically produced high-performance chip platform with full automotive certification, successfully integrated into several popular vehicle models [6][9] - The Huashan A2000 family of chips is designed for specific scenarios, offering superior performance and energy efficiency compared to general-purpose GPUs, thus enhancing the capabilities of ADAS [9][11] Technological Innovations - Black Sesame's chips incorporate programmability and a new NPU architecture called "Jiushao," which enhances performance and adaptability to new algorithms, supporting the evolving needs of intelligent driving [9][11] - The Wudang C1200 family focuses on multi-domain integration, enabling seamless interaction between various vehicle systems, thereby improving user experience and data exchange capabilities [11]

Investment Rating - The report suggests to pay attention to the industry and its developments [4] Core Insights - The high-level intelligent driving technology is becoming more accessible by 2025, with an upward trend in the industry chain's prosperity driven by mature supply-side technologies and demand-side strategies [3][9] - The new paradigm of computing power in vehicles includes DSA heterogeneous integration, cockpit fusion, and RISC-V architecture, which enhances algorithm optimization and cost efficiency [3][10][17] - Domestic alternatives are emerging with quality supply, and there is potential for technology to go abroad, especially in the mid-to-high-end NOA segment [3][24][26] - The trend of integrated hardware and software is leading to competitive intersections among various players, with traditional manufacturers and new forces both investing in self-research and collaboration [3][27] - The economic analysis of self-research in intelligent driving indicates an annual cost of approximately 2 billion RMB, with significant investments in SoC and algorithms [3][28] Summary by Sections 1. New Paradigm of Computing Power - The supply side is seeing advancements in intelligent driving hardware and software, with improved cost-performance ratios [3][9] - The demand side is influenced by traditional manufacturers promoting lower price points for intelligent driving features [3][9] - The architecture is evolving towards a more integrated approach, moving from multi-box systems to single-chip solutions [3][14] 2. Domestic Alternatives and Technology Export - The domestic market is seeing a growing presence of local suppliers in the mid-to-high-end NOA segment, with companies like Horizon Robotics and Black Sesame emerging as key players [3][26] - The low-end segment remains dominated by foreign companies, but domestic technologies are expected to expand internationally [3][26] 3. Competitive Landscape and Self-Research - Leading companies are enhancing their capabilities by integrating computing power, toolchains, and algorithms [3][28] - The competition is intensifying as companies like Huawei and Tesla are investing heavily in self-research and development of their own chips and algorithms [3][27] - The report highlights the importance of a comprehensive approach to self-research, with significant financial commitments required to maintain competitiveness [3][28] 4. Company Analysis - Companies like NVIDIA and Huawei are leading in hardware performance and ecosystem development, while also seeking to strengthen their algorithm capabilities [3][32][39] - Horizon Robotics is positioned as a leader in providing integrated intelligent driving solutions, with a focus on software and service revenue [3][51]