smart & ECARX Form Joint Venture to Drive Development of Intelligent Automotive Products

smart, the all-electric auto brand, and ECARX Holdings Inc., a global mobility technology provider, have announced the establishment of a joint venture (JV) called smart (Zhejiang) Software Technology Co., Ltd. The JV aims to develop intelligent experiences within smart vehicles.

Through this new partnership, the two companies will work together to drive technological advances, expand the research and development ecosystem through talent exchanges and joint innovation, and accelerate their global expansion efforts.

They will also jointly explore new possibilities for immersive cockpit experiences in areas including 3A games, artificial intelligence, brand IP incubation, and ecosystem development. 

ECARX and smart previously collaborated on the smart #1 and smart #3 models, for which they jointly developed smartOS, an operating system with a unique HMI design.

smart Automobile Co., Ltd. was officially established in 2019.

Tong Xiangbei, Global CEO of smart Automobile, says: “The era of software-defined cars has arrived, and smart considers its 'future tech’ orientation as a core brand value. By partnering with ECARX to establish a joint venture, we will build an outstanding team of talent, integrate shared resources, invest in innovative research and development, and jointly empower smart to continue leading in the field of intelligent technology and in bringing high quality, new-premium intelligent mobility experiences to users.”

Ziyu Shen, co-founder, Chairman and CEO of ECARX, adds: “ECARX and smart have a strong track record of cooperation, having jointly developed the highly acclaimed smartOS. Through this joint venture, we will continue iterating to create a refreshing and industry-leading intelligent experience by expanding our talent exchanges, R&D efforts, and supply chain network. Together, ECARX and smart will work to bring our intelligent technology ecosystem to vehicle owners around the world."

Founded in 2017, ECARX has over 2,000 employees based in 11 major locations in China, UK, USA, Sweden, Germany and Malaysia.