Goldman Sachs Quick Comment "Eye of the God": BYD's Competitive Advantage Expands, Widening the Gap with Peers

Overnight, BYD launched the "God's Eye" intelligent driving system, further widening the gap with its peers and continuing to lead the new energy vehicle market.

On February 10, BYD held a vehicle intelligence strategy meeting in Shenzhen, focusing on its "God's Eye" advanced intelligent driving system. Notably, BYD announced the launch of 21 new intelligent driving models, with prices on par with or even lower than previous versions. BYD will also make high-speed navigation and valet parking functions standard features for models starting at 100,000 RMB.

Goldman Sachs commented in its latest report:

By launching autonomous driving features on mass-market models, BYD has once again expanded the technological gap with most automakers in the market, further enhancing its competitive advantage among peers.

The retail prices of the newly launched Sea Lion 05 EV and Song Pro DM-i intelligent driving versions are 7%-9% lower than the old versions. This means BYD has made the high-speed navigation NOA function available on models starting at 70,000 RMB, marking the official entry of autonomous driving features into mass-market models.

Goldman Sachs expects BYD's annual sales to grow to 8 million units by 2030 and has given a buy rating:

BYD is in a favorable position in both domestic and international markets. The company not only captures the largest demand in the mass market but also establishes a high-end brand in the domestic market through supportive new energy vehicle policies. At the same time, BYD is leveraging attractive products to enter overseas markets, which is expected to become the company's second growth driver.

BYD's total vehicle sales will grow from 3 million units in 2023 to 8 million units by 2030, accounting for one-third of China's new energy vehicle wholesale demand. Currently, BYD's A/H share trading price is below its historical average 12-month forward P/E ratio, which we find attractive, and we give a buy rating. Catalysts include strong sales, new supportive policies in the new energy vehicle industry, breakthroughs in overseas markets, and quarterly performance.

Additionally, Goldman Sachs summarized the key points from BYD's press conference:

BYD launched three different autonomous driving solutions: "God's Eye A": the DiPilot 600 version using LiDAR, equipped in the Yangwang brand; "God's Eye B": the DiPilot 300 version using LiDAR, equipped in Denza and BYD's high-end models; "God's Eye C": the DiPilot 100 version using pure vision methods, equipped in the BYD brand