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Author | Chai Xuchen
Editor | Zhou Zhiyu
Unexpectedly, Richard Yu was absent from Huawei's opening product event of the year, but the automotive &#34;legion&#34; was ready to fire on all cylinders.
On March 23, He Gang, CEO of Huawei Terminal BG, replaced Richard Yu, who was absent for undisclosed reasons, to unveil the largest automotive product portfolio in the history of the Harmony Intelligent Mobility Alliance (HIMA) to date. The launch featured three all-new models and six updated versions of existing models, setting a new record.
The second product series of Shangjie—the Z7 and Z7T shooting brakes—along with the Aito M6, made their debut. Meanwhile, the Aito M7, Aito M8, Luxeed S7, Luxeed R7, STELATO S9, and STELATO S9T all received simultaneous updates, with all models equipped with the new-generation 896-line dual-optical path image-grade LiDAR. Additionally, He Gang revealed information about HIMA's first MPV, the Luxeed V9, with display vehicles expected to arrive in stores in late April.
After surpassing the one-million-unit delivery milestone last year, HIMA is preparing to launch a new saturation-style offensive to reach the next level. However, industry executives have already predicted that the market will enter a zero-sum game within its existing capacity this year. Can Huawei's automotive legion continue its triumphant advance relying solely on a &#34;sea of cars&#34; strategy?
<h2>Playing the Cards</h2>
As Huawei's first most important launch event of the year, HIMA set the tone for the entire year with nine models, but its ambition to increase volume depends on tapping into the youth market.
In the HIMA annual livestream last December, Richard Yu revealed that by 2026, the product matrix of the &#34;Five Realms&#34; under HIMA would be further completed. The Aito series, which was previously missing the M6 model, is about to be launched.
Now, Aito's final card has finally entered the public eye. This time, Huawei and SERES mean business.
The upgrade in intelligent driving hardware is the M6's first trump card: dual LiDARs at the front and rear, with the forward-facing unit being 500-line, providing wider coverage and finer recognition. Furthermore, the rear LiDAR, combined with the vehicle's full visual perception, significantly enhances the ability to recognize foreign objects and dynamic obstacles during high-speed night driving.
Notably, as a competitor in the same class, the entire Tesla Model Y lineup still focuses on pure vision. Industry insiders pointed out to Wall Street News that when vehicles on the same platform are equipped with dual LiDAR, the improvement in recognizing critical obstacles in adverse weather is more pronounced, and the fault tolerance in extreme environments is much higher than with a single LiDAR.
Beyond the dual LiDAR, the M6 also features a more youthful exterior. With a closed front face, blackened rims, red Brembo calipers, and a ducktail spoiler, the entire sport kit is no longer understated. The front lines are lower, even approaching the Model Y in terms of drag coefficient.
Regarding the three-electric systems, the pure electric version of the M6 is packed with a 100 kWh battery. Notably, the 100 kWh long-range version of the Xpeng G9 sells for over 300,000 yuan. Aito M6 uses a large battery to push the range entry barrier below the median line of mainstream joint-venture and domestic high-end pure EVs, which is quite seductive for the young demographic under budget pressure.
This level of stacking features is essentially a signal that Huawei is eager to regain its voice in the youth market after the Aito M5's sales slumped to less than a thousand units per month. The focus on SUVs is just the beginning; Huawei's next card targets the &#34;dream car&#34; of young people—the shooting brake coupe.
This time, the Z7 and Z7T, positioned as a mid-to-large pure electric coupe and a mid-to-large pure electric shooting brake respectively, became the &#34;blockbuster&#34; for the &#34;Fifth Realm,&#34; Shangjie. Sources close to Shangjie and Huawei pointed out to Wall Street News that this coupe from Shangjie is aimed squarely at the Porsche Panamera.
Previously, brands from NIO (ET5T) and Zeekr (001) to the current Fangchengbao, Leapmotor, and Deepal have all &#34;let loose&#34; and entered this track. Having pinpointed the direction, SAIC and Huawei decided to go ALL IN. Previously, Richard Yu had stated: &#34;Cars in the 200,000-yuan range need to 'look premium'; what we want is the modern feel of the Shanghai Bund.&#34; As a family member of HIMA, Shangjie must be exquisite.
In the eyes of industry insiders, Shangjie's Z7 series has put pressure on hit models such as the Xiaomi SU7. However, Shangjie has not chosen to engage in a price war; the pre-sale price of this series is not lower than that of the SU7. Perhaps this is Huawei's gamble to use its ecosystem to overtake in sales.
<h2>Iteration</h2>
For domestic automotive players, the pressure this year may increase rather than decrease. An executive from a new car-making force told Wall Street News frankly that the total volume of China's passenger car market will decline this year and next, and it will not experience the high-speed growth of the past. &#34;This is the situation we have to face now; no one should have any wishful thinking.&#34;
The market has become more brutal. &#34;Now, when a new technology is released, others will catch up within half a year or a year,&#34; the executive said, noting that no one dares to claim their technology is six months or a year ahead of others anymore. Furthermore, the marketing paradigm for new cars has changed. &#34;I have coined a term called the 'Death Valley of the New Car Effect.' It is now very difficult to find a 'perennial' car that remains a hot seller.&#34;
Industry data also proves that since last year, the hot-selling period for new or redesigned new energy vehicles with an average price above 200,000 yuan typically lasts only three months.
In the view of the aforementioned individual, today's marketing is pulse-style, causing the &#34;new car effect&#34; to fade. After the initial sales period, there is a cliff-like drop into a &#34;death valley.&#34; &#34;I believe no one in the industry will be spared; it will be like this for everyone. We must respect this law. If you don't respect this law, sighing is useless.&#34;
As technology permeates the automotive market comprehensively, consumer enthusiasm also &#34;rises and fades quickly.&#34; However, Richard Yu, who has been deeply involved in the electronic products market for decades, quickly found a way to break through: high-speed iteration.
Since last year, HIMA has had major launch events almost every month and significant new cars every quarter. This time, it introduced the updated Luxeed R7 and the new S7, the updated STELATO S9 and S9T, as well as new color options for the Aito M8.
In early March, HIMA's technical upgrade event introduced the 896-line LiDAR, which was first featured on the MAEXTRO S800 and Aito M9. Today, the main Aito models, M7 and M8, have also launched 896-line LiDAR versions, and the newly released Z7/Z7T also carry it, pushing the vehicle's intelligent experience up another notch and further solidifying the &#34;intelligent&#34; label.
It is clear that Richard Yu is becoming increasingly seasoned in managing the &#34;Five Realms,&#34; and HIMA's volume-boosting efforts are hitting their stride.
In the eyes of industry insiders, HIMA has a very strong ability to correct product direction and a very fast market response capability, which is why the market sees multiple upgrades and redesigns in a short period.
HIMA is breaking the traditional mindset where different brands and products within an automotive group communicate independently. Instead, it uses the HIMA ecosystem alliance to repeatedly tell stories and explain advantages at a high frequency. This has also created a mutually reinforcing effect among the brands of the &#34;Five Realms&#34;: the technology of the MAEXTRO S800 and Aito M9 can provide an endorsement for other brands, thereby accumulating potential high-end users for Luxeed, STELATO, and Shangjie.
This high-speed iteration tactic is solving the problem of the short hot-selling period for hit models.
Last year, HIMA's sales climbed all the way, completing its first million-unit delivery by the end of October. This year, HIMA is pushing toward its second million in sales. However, since the beginning of 2026, the performance of the domestic auto market hasn't been great. For all car companies, there is certain pressure to achieve this year's sales targets.
HIMA showing off several cars at once is clearly intended to seize the rhythm at the start of the year and drive rapid sales growth. However, a market of existing stock will not automatically expand just because launch events are dense—when competitors also learn high-speed iteration, how deep HIMA's ecosystem moat truly is will be the question Huawei's automotive legion really needs to answer next.

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