Abstract

"Vehicle intelligence will change the competitive landscape."

The surge of electrification and autonomous driving that has driven the global automotive industry has reached a major turning point due to course corrections in environmental regulations and the emergence of generative AI. Leading US, European, and Japanese manufacturers are being forced to significantly revise their EV investment plans or undergo large-scale restructuring, while also responding to the advancement of vehicle intelligence, which is the core of their competitive position.

Amid major changes in the rules of the game, the Chinese market's strongest EV manufacturers and the powerful ecosystem that supports them are rapidly emerging. This is organically linked to China's national digital strategy. Toyota Motor Corporation, the leader among traditional manufacturers, is taking a different approach, sometimes competing fiercely and sometimes joining forces. Both companies are overwhelming others in their quest to seize the automotive market of the future. Faced with a pincer attack by the two powerful companies that have gained competitiveness, many traditional manufacturers are rapidly losing their markets.

Chinese EV manufacturers are beginning to shift their competitive stage from the domestic Chinese market to the global market. They are also beginning to make full-scale inroads not only in Southeast Asia but also in Japan. Is there a way for Toyota and the domestic auto industry to win?

A leading Japanese auto analyst paints a picture of the future of the auto industry, with an eye on the increasingly fragmented industrial hegemony.

Author’s Information

A graduate of the University of Oregon, he worked at Yamaichi Securities, Merrill Lynch Securities, and other companies before serving as head of equity research at JP Morgan Securities' Tokyo branch and head of growth equity research at AllianceBernstein. He is currently the lead analyst at Nakanishi Automotive Industry Research Co., Ltd. He is one of Japan's leading automotive analysts, having maintained an unshakable position, having been ranked number one in domestic and international analyst rankings for six consecutive years. His many books include "Toyota's EV War" (Kodansha BC), "The New Normal for Automobiles," "The CASE Revolution," and "Toyota vs. VW" (all published by Nikkei Publishing).