From October 16, the domestic map service market has "fried the pot".
The trigger was a news item released by the Ministry of State Security entitled "Secret Surveying and Mapping Secrets Leaked." The news mentioned that the state security authorities found that "a foreign company, Company A, illegally carried out geographic information surveying and mapping activities in the mainland under the cover of carrying out research on intelligent driving of automobiles through cooperation with company B with surveying and mapping qualifications in the mainland." ”
It is reported that Company A is a contractor for a project in a key sensitive area of a certain country, and according to the "Surveying and Mapping Law of the People's Republic of China", it does not have the qualifications to carry out geographic information surveying and mapping activities in the mainland alone.
Driven by the temptation of economic interests, Company B used its surveying and mapping qualifications to play a cover role for Company A to illegally obtain surveying and mapping data in China. Finally, under the control and instruction of Company A, Company B transferred the surveying and mapping data out of the country.
This shocking news quickly aroused widespread concern in the automotive industry, putting domestic map suppliers and related automotive companies at risk.
In the middle of the night, many companies refuted the rumors
On the evening of the 16th, a number of related companies issued statements overnight to clarify that they had nothing to do with the matter.
Tao Lin, Tesla's global vice president, posted on his personal social account, emphasizing, "Compliance is the bottom line of business operations!" Tesla has always believed that the intelligence of compliance is the intelligence of sustainable development. She said that Tesla's goal is to provide consumers with safe and reliable products and excellent and stable services.
It is worth noting that Tesla does not have a mapping qualification in China. In April this year, Tesla passed four compliance requirements for China's automotive data security. Its FSD (Full Self-Driving) system uses Baidu Maps in China. In 2013, Baidu Maps acquired Changdi Wanfang and had the Grade A qualification for the production of navigation electronic maps
Almost at the same time, NavInfo, Geely Automobile and other companies also issued documents one after another.
NavInfo has always adhered to the principle of legal and compliant operation. NavInfo is one of the earliest map service providers in China, and obtained the Grade A surveying and mapping qualification as early as 2002. At present, the qualification includes navigation electronic map production, geodesy, geographic information system engineering, photogrammetry and remote sensing and other professional categories.
Image source: NavInfo social platform
Yang Xueliang, senior vice president of Geely Holding Group, responded on Weibo, "It has nothing to do with ZEEKR, nor is it done by ZEEKR's partners, and the rumors stop at the wise."
Geely Group, the parent company of ZEEKR, is the only vehicle manufacturer's own map dealer in China with the national Grade A surveying and mapping qualification. In 2020, ECARX, a subsidiary of Geely Group, obtained the Grade A Surveying and Mapping Qualification for Electronic Navigation Maps. After the restructuring of ECARX, this qualification is operated by the same company, Langge Technology. Founded in 2021, Langge Technology is wholly owned by Geely.
Image source: Langge Technology
Langge is the map supporter of ZEEKR landing NZP and other Geely brands of high-end intelligent driving.
ZEEKR was questioned because of its cooperation with Mobileye, an autonomous driving company owned by Intel. On the same day, the Cyberspace Security Association of China issued a document saying that Intel product security vulnerabilities are frequent, with problems such as poor reliability, user monitoring, and secret backdoors, and put forward "recommendations to start a network security review".
Image source: Mobileye's official Weibo
In the early morning of October 17, Mobileye China's official Weibo account issued a statement emphasizing its continuous investment in data security and legal compliance, and that it is operating in accordance with the law under the supervision of qualified partners in relevant countries and regions, including China.
In addition, map providers such as Kotei Information have also responded to the matter. Some industry insiders ridiculed, "The capital market is looking for those who have not actively disclosed information today."
At present, the stock price of map providers that have issued clarification announcements has fluctuated. NavInfo, Kotei Information and others opened up more than 4% today.
Who is qualified to navigate electronic maps?
As we all know, the approval and management of Class A qualifications for the production of navigation electronic maps are extremely strict. In July this year, the Ministry of Natural Resources emphasized the qualification of intelligent networked vehicle surveying and mapping, and strictly reviewed the map.
According to the data released on the official website of the Ministry of Natural Resources, as of the end of 2023, there are 21,008 surveying and mapping qualification units in the surveying, mapping and geographic information industry, a year-on-year increase of 13.6%, of which 2,076 are Grade A units. However, specifically in the field of navigation electronic map production, after the review and renewal of surveying and mapping qualifications in 2022, with the addition of new additions, the number of enterprises with Class A surveying and mapping qualifications has only expanded to more than 30 (source: Tianyancha App and public data, for reference only).
Having the qualification of navigation electronic map is the premise for enterprises to carry out high-precision map processing, production and production. High-definition maps are the key solution to achieve full autonomous driving. Some industry insiders said that in the past two years, the country's review of Class A qualifications for the production of navigation electronic maps has been tightened. Therefore, the industry regards this qualification as one of the highest grade A surveying and mapping qualifications.
However, due to the cost reduction of the automotive industry, it has moved towards the trend of "mapless intelligent driving" in the past two years. This has made life difficult for some providers who focus on HD maps. Even if the grade A qualification of navigation electronic map is high, it cannot give enterprises high returns in a short period of time, but becomes a "drag".
Among the more than 30 map companies, many of them have been invested or controlled by leading Internet companies or vehicle manufacturers. Behind the well-known AutoNavi Map, Baidu Map (acquisition of Changdi Wanfang), and Tencent Map are Ali, Baidu and Tencent. In addition, Internet giants such as Meituan, Huawei, and iFLYTEK have entered the field of high-precision maps through investment or self-construction.
For example, iFLYTEK and Tencent have invested in Meixing Technology. Beijing Huawei Digital Technology Co., Ltd., established by Huawei, also obtained relevant qualifications in 2019. Coincidentally, Didi invested in NavInfo's subsidiary, and Unisplendour Group acquired Lingtu to lay out the field of high-precision maps.
In terms of automakers, Geely has established Langge Technology by taking a stake in ECARX, and has the absolute right to speak in the production of electronic maps. At the same time, Geely holds a controlling stake in Emap through Luokung. SAIC Motor has obtained the Class A surveying and mapping qualification for the production of navigation electronic maps by taking a stake in Zhonghaiting, a subsidiary of Kotei Information Holdings. Xpeng Motors acquired Zhitu Technology for 250 million yuan.
Although in the past two years, the automotive industry has tended to "mapless intelligent driving" in order to reduce costs, industry insiders pointed out that high-precision maps are still the key to achieving autonomous driving above the L4 level.
However, the collection and use of surveying and mapping geographic information is prone to involve sensitive information, and once leaked, it may affect national security, which is one of the reasons for the strict control of relevant departments.