China’s biggest EV maker BYD this week unveiled a leap into driverless systems with its “God’s Eye” system for no extra cost on cars as it continues to rack up market share with less expensive electric vehicle options. BYD unveiled a new car automation system, stepping up from its existing advanced driver-assistance system (ADAS) — which drew criticism from European testers Euro NCAP — to something closer to a level-two “driverless” style automation system that has drawn comparison to Tesla’s own, and perhaps even beyond, with systems that it claims can handle city driving, not just highways. Notably, the bottom-end Seagull — priced at RMB 69,800 or just shy of $10,000 US — will feature one version of that God’s Eye ADAS that BYD says is capable of driving on motorways for 600 miles without driver intervention. “[We are] starting an era where autonomous driving is for everyone,” founder Wang Chuanfu said at an event on Monday, according to reports, saying ADAS was no longer a luxury but an “essential” safety tool like belts and airbags. “BYD has now gone from 0 to 1 in (autonomous driving) development, which will accelerate the adoption rate of the function in the mass market and lead to a wave of upgrades by existing users,” Jefferies analyst Johnson Wan was quoted as saying.

Full commentary : China steals the march in autonomous vehicles space with BYD’s “God’s Eye” autonomy.