Xpeng P7 becomes the first smart car to implement Alibaba In-Car Mini App technology for drivers; first to support China’s IFAA

We first wrote about Xpeng Motors in January 2018 when the Chinese electric car startup raised $350 million from Alibaba and Foxconn. Today, Xpeng Motors announced today that Xpeng P7 now becomes the first smart car with Alibaba In-Car Mini APP  and the first to support China’s Internet Finance Authentication Alliance (IFAA). Xpeng Motors has worked with AliOS to implement the Alibaba In-Car Mini APP into the Xpeng P7, opening the door of a vast in-car service ecosystem tailored for smart vehicles. The partnership between Xpeng Motors and Alibaba marks another breakthrough in upgrading in-car experience.

The Guangzhou, China-based Xpeng was co-founded in 2014 by Henry Xia and He Tao, former senior executives at Guangzhou Auto with expertise in innovative automotive technology and R&D. Xiaopeng, which operates under the trade name Xpeng Motors, focuses on developing “Internet cars” and electric vehicles, and is conducting research on autonomous driving technology. Xpeng designs and manufactures automobiles that are seamlessly integrated with the Internet and utilize the latest advances in artificial intelligence.

The In-Car Mini APP will initially focus on driver-centric functions related to location, navigation, traffic status, travel assistant or driver condition monitoring and will gradually expand to a host of other mobility, lifestyle and infotainment functions.

It integrates the most advanced AI-powered vision and voice interaction, and user behavior-monitoring technology, to select and promote services that fit for each driver’s preferences. It will be open to third party developers to launch more value-added services tailored for driver’s needs and the in-car environment.

The strength of the Alibaba In-Car Mini APP platform, with its powerful location and navigation capability, and strong user-case tailored services and best-in-class security features, makes it the most logical fit for smart vehicles.

“We are very proud to have partnered with Alibaba to tailor make the In-Car Mini APP with real-time vehicle-to-app interaction needed by smart cars. Alibaba provides the highest level of security and trust to complement the cutting-edge technology in our upcoming P7 coupe. We are very excited about the immense promise and the variety of choices it brings to our customers,” said Rocky Liu, General Manager of Internet Technology at Xpeng Motors.

China’s Internet Finance Authentication Alliance (IFAA) releases new virtual car key standards

China’s IFAA, the 200-member technology industry alliance responsible for setting and implementing Internet authentication security standards, today released the new set of standards and technical specifications for digital vehicle keys.

Xpeng Motors, nominated as Co-Chair of IFAA’s Technical Standard Focus Group in July, has worked with by Ant Financial and two other member companies to draft the new standards which set the framework, procedures and benchmarks for implementing and updating digital car key security measures that are critical for smart connected vehicles.

The Xpeng P7 will be the first mass production model to implement IFAA standards-compliant authentication digital car key technology.

“Today marks a milestone in the development of security measures for smart connected vehicles. The new standards bring the most advanced authentication technology – hitherto mostly used in the finance industry – on board connected vehicles. This is the first time that biometrics-based technologies such as facial recognition and fingerprints are implemented in digital keys for smart vehicles,” said Mr. Ji Yu, Vice President at Xpeng Motors at Alibaba’s 2019 Hangzhou Apsara Conference, where the IFAA released the new standards today.

“As a frontrunner in the smart electric vehicle sector, Xpeng Motors is honored to have worked with the IFAA and industry leader Ant Financial to build better industry standards. The partnership is an endorsement of Xpeng’s strength as a leading player in the smart EV space,” Ji Yu added.

Xpeng’s virtual car key solution implemented in the P7 uses the IFAA-standard authentication technology to securely deliver a host of advanced features hitherto unattainable in the auto sector, including:
• Secure facial and fingerprint unlocking of vehicles based on individual biometrics
• Remote starting, auto-parking and summoning of vehicles
• Secure sharing of virtual keys to family members via Bluetooth

Established in 2015 by a group of technology leaders including the China Institute of Information and Communications, Ant Financial, Huawei, Samsung and ZTE, the IFAA (https://ifaa.org.cn/about) is an alliance that focuses on implementing and fostering Internet authentication security standards. It currently has over 200 corporate members from more than 10 countries, including device and chip manufacturers, security solution and machining learning providers, and government monitoring institutions. IFAA solutions are being used in over 1.5 billion devices, while IFAA fingerprint authentication and facial recognition solutions have over 500 million users.

Xpeng Motors’ initial backers include its Chairman He Xiaopeng, the founder of UCWeb Inc. and a former Alibaba executive. Xpeng was co-founded in 2014 by Henry Xia and He Tao, former senior executives at Guangzhou Auto with expertise in innovative automotive technology and R&D. It has received funding from prominent Chinese and international investors including Alibaba Group and IDG Capital. The company launched its first production model, the G3 SUV, in Dec 2018. Xpeng’s 2nd production model, the P7 four-door electric coupe, premiered at the Auto Shanghai show in April 2019, and will be delivered to Chinese customers in Q2 2020. The company is building its fully-owned intelligent factory in Zhaoqing, Guangdong Province, targeting completion in Q3 2019.