In a move reflecting the growing collaboration between joint venture automakers and Chinese AI technology providers, smart announced its first plug-in hybrid model, the smart #5 EHD, featuring DeepRoute.ai’s assisted driving technology, selected specifically for its safety, human-like driving behavior, and mass-production scalability. A joint test drive conducted by Maxwell Zhou, CEO of DeepRoute.ai, and Yang Jun, Global CTO of smart, achieved zero takeovers across 30.9 kilometers of complex urban driving—demonstrating the technology’s maturity and smart’s vision for the future of intelligent mobility.

This road test shows the assisted driving system navigating real-world urban conditions and challenging scenarios including unprotected left turns, construction zones, dense traffic, and sections without lane markings. The system demonstrated precise recognition of pedestrians, cyclists, emergency vehicles, and dynamic obstacles whilst maintaining smooth, confident driving behavior that mirrored human-like decision making.

Marketing Technology News: MarTech Interview with Haley Trost, Group Product Marketing Manager @ Braze

“We believe the future of autonomous driving must prioritize both safety and an intuitive, human-like driving style—qualities we see embodied in DeepRoute.ai’s technology,” said Yang Jun, Global CTO of smart. “That is why smart specifically selected DeepRoute.ai as our partner. When the industry was debating whether map-free technology could work, we saw the future and chose to lead. This test drive demonstrated exceptional stability and intelligence. Safety is the greatest luxury.”

“smart chose a partner with proven ability to deliver at scale,” said Maxwell Zhou, CEO of DeepRoute.ai. “We have now delivered approximately 150,000 production vehicles globally, fully demonstrating our engineering maturity and manufacturing capability. This provides partners like smart with highly reliable, adaptable solutions while establishing a robust data foundation for continuous technology iteration. When others remained uncertain about map-free solutions, smart trusted our vision. This partnership demonstrates what is possible when luxury brands embrace technological leadership.”

Marketing Technology News: Cross-Department Collaboration with Marketing Workflow Automation: Enhancing Alignment Between Sales, Customer Service, and Marketing Teams

The smart #5 EHD represents the latest milestone in the collaboration between smart and DeepRoute.ai, extending proven technology capabilities from pure electric platforms to plug-in hybrid vehicles. DeepRoute.ai’s approach addresses core challenges facing autonomous driving deployment at scale, including operating in varied urban environments and providing users with a more comprehensive and technologically advanced driving experience.

Looking ahead, DeepRoute.ai is advancing the convergence of intelligent driving and in-cabin large models, moving toward an integrated agent-based architecture. This next phase of development will further enhance contextual understanding and enable vehicles to interact naturally with drivers.

The collaboration between smart and DeepRoute.ai exemplifies how technological maturity and human-centric design can coexist. By uniting luxury brand DNA with proven production-scale technology, the two companies are redefining the assisted driving experience for today’s drivers and tomorrow’s intelligent mobility.