BYD and other Chinese automakers have studied the European auto market for years. Now, it’s time to put their knowledge to the test and go all-in on the European auto market.
BYD’s strategy to take over Europe was recently revealed in a report by Reuters. The publication also shared details about how other Chinese automakers are entering the European market and their plans to beat top-selling brands like Tesla and Volkswagen in the EU’s local electric vehicle (EVs) market.
Below are the strategies BYD and Chinese automakers are implementing to deploy their vehicles in Europe.
- Understand European car consumers and their needs
- Improved marketing to increase brand awareness
- Expand dealership networks
- Build an extensive after-sales care service network, including improved service-and-repair operations.
- Protect resale values
The roads are buzzing with SUPER DM technology. The BYD SEAL U DM-i combines a range of more than 1000km with an attention to detail in every inch of its interior. It's the perfect synthesis of comfort and adventure.#BYD #BuildYourDreams #BYDSEALUDMi pic.twitter.com/gSNGtLzQV4— BYD Europe (@BYD_Europe) May 22, 2024
China Cars with Europeans in Mind
BYD and Chinese automakers have learned that adapting and importing cars from China to Europe is not enough. They have studied European car owners to understand the details they look for when purchasing a vehicle. As a result, some Chinese car brands have started designing cars from scratch for European buyers.
For instance, Chinese automakers have learned that safety ratings are important to European car owners, so they have improved their vehicles with safety as a priority.
“In China, the purchase price is important. But for European consumers, it’s not just price, but total cost of ownership, including maintenance, service, and residual values,” commented Bo Yu, JATO Dynamics’ Greater China Country Manager.
China-based car manufacturers are also strengthening and expanding repair-and-service operations to enhance after-sales care in Europe. Plus, they have started understanding the importance of resale values for European car owners.
“There are hard rules on issues like safety and that are clear, and then there are soft rules that aren’t written down. The Chinese are very eager to learn the soft rules,” said Ben Townsend, Head of Automotive at Thatcham.
Chinese Automakers’ Biggest Advantage
Electric vehicles have offered brands—both old and new—a chance to grow and expand in the transitioning auto market worldwide. Many automakers have not been phased by the EV market’s slowdown and are charging ahead in electric vehicle development. As such, EVs have become a good entry into the European market for China-based automakers.
Electric vehicles offer Chinese automakers one significant advantage in the global auto market: affordable prices.
China has also started to promote and grow its new energy vehicle (NEV) market, which includes battery electric vehicles (BEVs) and plug-in hybrid electric vehicles (PHEVs). The Chinese government financially supports local car companies through subsidies and its ever-expanding EV supply chain. China is ahead regarding battery-minerals mining, a critical part of the EV supply chain that affects costs.
The local government’s support has resulted in decreased EV prices, like the BYD Seagull, which is under $10,000 in China. The United States has tried to combat against Chinese EVs’ affordable prices by increasing import tariffs by 100%. Europe is expected to raise import tariffs for Chinese EV imports as well. However, the EU’s import tariffs might not be enough to dissuade consumers from affordable EV prices.
The BYD Seagull, for example, is expected to start below $20,000 in Europe even after EU tariffs. Volkswagen, one of Europe’s top car brands, doesn’t expect to launch an EV below €20,000 ($21,631) until 2027.
Equipped with a Europe-focused affordable EV, Chinese automakers have one more obstacle to tackle: brand awareness. BYD is already working on spreading its brand in Europe by participating in and funding local sporting events, like the Europe 2024 soccer championship. It is also working closely with local dealerships.
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News
Rivian unveils self-driving chip and autonomy plans to compete with Tesla
Rivian, a mainstay in the world of electric vehicle startups, said it plans to roll out an Autonomy+ subscription and one-time purchase program, priced at $49.99 per month and $2,500 up front, respectively, for access to its self-driving suite.
Rivian unveiled its self-driving chip and autonomy plans to compete with Tesla and others at its AI and Autonomy Day on Thursday in Palo Alto, California.
Rivian, a mainstay in the world of electric vehicle startups, said it plans to roll out an Autonomy+ subscription and one-time purchase program, priced at $49.99 per month and $2,500 up front, respectively, for access to its self-driving suite.
CEO RJ Scaringe said it will learn and become more confident and robust as more miles are driven and it gathers more data. This is what Tesla uses through a neural network, as it uses deep learning to improve with every mile traveled.
He said:
“I couldn’t be more excited for the work our teams are driving in autonomy and AI. Our updated hardware platform, which includes our in-house 1600 sparse TOPS inference chip, will enable us to achieve dramatic progress in self-driving to ultimately deliver on our goal of delivering L4. This represents an inflection point for the ownership experience – ultimately being able to give customers their time back when in the car.”
At first, Rivian plans to offer the service to personally-owned vehicles, and not operate as a ride-hailing service. However, ride-sharing is in the plans for the future, he said:
“While our initial focus will be on personally owned vehicles, which today represent a vast majority of the miles to the United States, this also enables us to pursue opportunities in the rideshare space.”
The Hardware
Rivian is not using a vision-only approach as Tesla does, and instead will rely on 11 cameras, five radar sensors, and a single LiDAR that will face forward.
It is also developing a chip in-house, which will be manufactured by TSMC, a supplier of Tesla’s as well. The chip will be known as RAP1 and will be about 50 times as powerful as the chip that is currently in Rivian vehicles. It will also do more than 800 trillion calculations every second.
Meet the Rivian Autonomy Processor.
Fast, smart, scalable and purpose-built for autonomous driving and the world of physical AI. Hitting the open road in 2026. pic.twitter.com/0wYXi5WKy7
— Rivian (@Rivian) December 11, 2025
RAP1 powers the Autonomy Compute Module 3, known as ACM3, which is Rivian’s third-generation autonomy computer.
ACM3 specs include:
- 1600 sparse INT8 TOPS (Trillion Operations Per Second).
- The processing power of 5 billion pixels per second.
- RAP1 features RivLink, a low-latency interconnect technology allowing chips to be connected to multiply processing power, making it inherently extensible.
- RAP1 is enabled by an in-house developed AI compiler and platform software
As far as LiDAR, Rivian plans to use it in forthcoming R2 cars to enable SAE Level 4 automated driving, which would allow people to sit in the back and, according to the agency’s ratings, “will not require you to take over driving.”
More Details
Rivian said it will also roll out advancements to the second-generation R1 vehicles in the near term with the addition of UHF, or Universal Hands-Free, which will be available on over 3.5 million miles of roadway in the U.S. and Canada.
More than any other feature, our owners have asked for more hands-free miles.
With Universal Hands-Free, you can now enjoy hands-free assisted driving on any road with clearly defined lanes. That’s roughly 3.5 million miles in the U.S. and Canada.
Look for it in our next… pic.twitter.com/ZFhwVzvt6b
— Rivian (@Rivian) December 11, 2025
Rivian will now join the competitive ranks with Tesla, Waymo, Zoox, and others, who are all in the race for autonomy.
News
Tesla partners with Lemonade for new insurance program
Tesla recently was offered “almost free” coverage for Full Self-Driving by Lemonade’s Shai Wininger, President and Co-founder, who said it would be “happy to explore insuring Tesla FSD miles for (almost) free.”
Tesla owners in California, Oregon, and Arizona can now use Lemonade Insurance, the firm that recently said it could cover Full Self-Driving miles for “almost free.”
Lemonade, which offered the new service through its app, has three distinct advantages, it says:
- Direct Connection for no telematics device needed
- Better customer service
- Smarter pricing
The company is known for offering unique, fee-based insurance rates through AI, and instead of keeping unclaimed premiums, it offers coverage through a flat free upfront. The leftover funds are donated to charities by its policyholders.
On Thursday, it announced that cars in three states would be able to be connected directly to the car through its smartphone app, enabling easier access to insurance factors through telematics:
Lemonade customers who own @Tesla vehicles in California, Oregon, and Arizona can now connect their cars directly to the Lemonade app! ⚡🚘
Direct connection = no telematics device needed 📵
Better customer experience 💃
Smarter pricing with Lemonade 🧠This is a game-changer… pic.twitter.com/jbabxZWT4t
— Lemonade (@Lemonade_Inc) December 11, 2025
Tesla recently was offered “almost free” coverage for Full Self-Driving by Lemonade’s Shai Wininger, President and Co-founder, who said it would be “happy to explore insuring Tesla FSD miles for (almost) free.”
The strategy would be one of the most unique, as it would provide Tesla drivers with stable, accurate, and consistent insurance rates, while also incentivizing owners to utilize Full Self-Driving for their travel miles.
Tesla Full Self-Driving gets an offer to be insured for ‘almost free’
This would make FSD more cost-effective for owners and contribute to the company’s data collection efforts.
Data also backs Tesla Full Self-Driving’s advantages as a safety net for drivers. Recent figures indicate it was nine times less likely to be in an accident compared to the national average, registering an accident every 6.36 million miles. The NHTSA says a crash occurs approximately every 702,000 miles.
Tesla also offers its own in-house insurance program, which is currently offered in twelve states so far. The company is attempting to enter more areas of the U.S., with recent filings indicating the company wants to enter Florida and offer insurance to drivers in that state.
Tesla Model Y configurations are getting hefty discounts and more benefits as the company is in the phase of its final sales push for the year.
Tesla is offering up to $1,500 off new Model Y Standard trims that are available in inventory in the United States. Additionally, Tesla is giving up to $2,000 off the Premium trims of the Model Y. There is also one free upgrade included, such as a paint color or interior color, at no additional charge.
NEWS: Tesla is now offering discounts of up to $1,500 off new Model Y Standard vehicles in U.S. inventory. Discounts of up to $2,000 are also being offered on Model Y Premiums.
These discounts are in addition to the one free upgrade you get (such as Diamond Black paint) on… pic.twitter.com/L0RMtjmtK0
— Sawyer Merritt (@SawyerMerritt) December 10, 2025
Tesla is hoping to bolster a relatively strong performance through the first three quarters of the year, with over 1.2 million cars delivered through the first three quarters.
This is about four percent under what the company reported through the same time period last year, as it was about 75,000 vehicles ahead in 2024.
However, Q3 was the company’s best quarterly performance of all time, and it surged because of the loss of the $7,500 EV tax credit, which was eliminated in September. The imminent removal of the credit led to many buyers flocking to Tesla showrooms to take advantage of the discount, which led to a strong quarter for the company.
2024 was the first year in the 2020s when Tesla did not experience a year-over-year delivery growth, as it saw a 1 percent slide from 2023. The previous years saw huge growth, with the biggest coming from 2020 to 2021, when Tesla had an 87 percent delivery growth.
This year, it is expected to be a second consecutive slide, with a drop of potentially 8 percent, if it manages to deliver 1.65 million cars, which is where Grok projects the automaker to end up.
Tesla will likely return to its annual growth rate in the coming years, but the focus is becoming less about delivery figures and more about autonomy, a major contributor to the company’s valuation. As AI continues to become more refined, Tesla will apply these principles to its Full Self-Driving efforts, as well as the Optimus humanoid robot project.
Will Tesla thrive without the EV tax credit? Five reasons why they might
These discounts should help incentivize some buyers to pull the trigger on a vehicle before the year ends. It will also be interesting to see if the adjusted EV tax credit rules, which allowed deliveries to occur after the September 30 cutoff date, along with these discounts, will have a positive impact.
Rivian unveils self-driving chip and autonomy plans to compete with Tesla
Tesla partners with Lemonade for new insurance program
