(Yicai Global) July 26 -- Chinese suppliers of car safety systems can claim a bigger market share if they seize the opening presented by self-driving technologies, according to Zhao Yan, chief technology officer of the Asian unit of industry giant Joyson Electronics.

The auto safety industry is changing with the advance of self-driving technologies, Joyson Safety Systems Asia’s Zhao told Yicai Global. Against this backdrop, the advantages that Chinese suppliers have in speed of development, cost control, and rapid response offers them a great opportunity, he noted.

The industry structure of the global car safety systems market has been stable for a long time, with the combined market share of the three main players exceeding 87 percent. In 2021, US-Swedish firm Autoliv had about a 40 percent share, Joyson around 30 percent, and Germany’s ZF about 17 percent.

New auto safety products, including seat belts, airbags, and steering wheels, will have to be developed to keep up with the continuous development of self-driving technologies from Level-3 to L5, Zhao said. The process will be accompanied by a wave of differentiation and elimination in the industry.

L5 driverless vehicles are fully autonomous, so they do not need a steering wheel. Moreover, fixed seat belts and airbags can be integrated into movable seats.

Some carmakers had added new tech to their vehicles before reaching L5 self-driving to enable consumers to get familiar with it. For example, Zhiji Automobile, the electric car joint venture of SAIC Motor, Alibaba Group Holding, and Shanghai Zhangjiang Hi-Tech Park Development, equipped a half-width steering wheel by Joyson in its IM LS7 sports utility vehicle.

Still, industry insiders are unsure when L5 autonomous driving will be adopted on a large-scale basis.

The application of L5 is slower than expected, Shan Jinhui, global executive vice president and Asia president of Joyson Safety Systems, told Yicai Global. But this year, L5 has been a little more popular with the continuous introduction of the urban navigate on autopilot function, he said.

Editor: Futura Costaglione