Huawei’s Expansion in Smart Driving Stirs Competition, Scrutiny

Chinese smartphone maker Xiaomi Corp.’s pivot into cars has become a high-profile success story. Its SU7 is a hit, forecast to sell 350,000 units this year and even Ford Motor Co. CEO Jim Farley has heaped praise on the model.

Less well-known is how rival smartphone maker Huawei Technologies Co. has also cemented a dominant position in China’s intensely competitive electric vehicle market — not by making cars of its own, but by creating the intelligent driving software that’s found its way into the cockpits of marques from BYD Co. to BMW AG.

Xiaomi’s SU7 electric vehicle at one of the company’s stores in Shanghai.

Photographer: Qilai Shen/Bloomberg

Its smart driving solutions ...