Overview
- Regulators approved only two of nine proposals, allowing Beijing Automotive Group and Changan to run Level 3 taxi pilots on three highway segments each in their home cities.
- The pilots bar computer-controlled lane changes, and vehicles must be under human control off the designated stretches.
- The approvals authorize further testing rather than mass production, signaling no set timeline for broader commercial rollout.
- Geely, XPeng and Li Auto can keep road-testing Level 3 systems, yet their cars are being sold with Level 2 software despite L3-ready hardware.
- Scrutiny intensified after a March Xiaomi SU7 crash that killed three, followed by a Public Security warning about driver responsibility and state TV tests showing domestic Level 2 systems lagging Tesla on reliability.