On December 29, 2023, the General Office of the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology officially issued the Guidelines for Building the National Automotive Chip Standards System, which were publicly released on January 8, 2024. The document aims to leverage standards to support and guide the development of the automotive chip industry, systematically advance standards development, technical verification, and application promotion, and establish a more regulated, open, and sustainable ecosystem for China’s automotive chip industry.

Incorporation into the National Standards System

Based on their functions, the Guidelines divide automotive chip products into ten categories: control chips, computing chips, sensor chips, communication chips, memory chips, security chips, power chips, driver chips, power management chips, and other chips.

The standards system also addresses general requirements such as environmental performance and reliability, electromagnetic compatibility, functional safety, and information security. In addition, it plans corresponding product technical requirements and matching test methods for automotive applications, including powertrain, chassis, body, cockpit, and intelligent driving systems.

As key components of drive, electronic control, charging, and energy management systems, power chips are explicitly included among the ten priority categories. This means that power semiconductor products must not only continue improving efficiency, performance, and power density, but also place greater emphasis on environmental adaptability, long-term reliability, safety, consistency, and compatibility with complete vehicle systems.

Advancing Automotive Chip Standards in Stages

According to the phased objectives set out in the Guidelines, more than 30 key automotive chip standards are expected to be developed by 2025. These standards will focus on defining fundamental requirements for environmental performance and reliability, electromagnetic compatibility, functional safety, and information security, while advancing technical specifications for key products and applications involving control, computing, memory, power, and communication chips.

By 2030, more than 70 automotive chip-related standards are planned. These standards will further improve general requirements, product and technical application specifications, and matching test requirements. They are expected to cover most typical automotive chip applications and corresponding test methods, while supporting the research and development of forward-looking and integrated automotive chip technologies and products.

From application verification and standalone chip testing to validation in critical systems and complete vehicles, the gradual improvement of the standards system will provide the automotive chip industry with more unified and standardized criteria for research, development, and evaluation. It will also help reduce communication costs across the industrial chain and accelerate the verification and adoption of high-quality chip products.

New Development Requirements for Power Semiconductors

As vehicle electrification continues to advance, higher requirements are being placed on energy conversion efficiency, system reliability, and thermal management. Power semiconductor devices such as MOSFETs, IGBTs, SiC devices, GaN devices, and SBDs have broad application potential in new energy vehicle motor control, onboard power supplies, charging systems, auxiliary power supplies, and various automotive electronic modules.

The establishment of the national automotive chip standards system not only provides clearer development directions for power chip products, but also introduces more systematic requirements for chip design, wafer manufacturing, packaging and testing, quality control, and application validation.

In the future, the ability to establish full-process quality management covering product development, manufacturing, reliability verification, and customer applications will become an important foundation for power semiconductor companies seeking to strengthen their competitiveness.

Hertz: Responding to New Industry Demands through Technological Innovation

Hertz has long focused on the research and development of power semiconductor products, with key product areas including MOSFETs, IGBTs, SiC devices, GaN devices, and SBDs.

The company brings together professionals with expertise in semiconductor wafer design, device development, and packaging manufacturing. Driven by technological innovation and centered on product quality, Hertz continues to improve its research and development, production, and quality management systems.

In response to the growing standardization and regulation of automotive chips, Hertz will continue to closely monitor the development and implementation of the national automotive chip standards system. The company will deepen research and development in power device performance, reliability, consistency, packaging processes, and application adaptability.

Hertz will also strengthen communication and collaboration with upstream and downstream partners across the industrial chain and actively explore opportunities for applying power semiconductor products in new energy vehicles and automotive electronics.

At the same time, the company will continue to uphold strict quality management requirements. From product design and material selection to manufacturing processes, packaging, and testing, Hertz will continuously improve product stability and reliability and respond to customer needs with higher-quality products and services.

Building the Future with Chips, Advancing through Innovation

Standards guide industrial development, while innovation shapes the future of enterprises. The release and implementation of the Guidelines for Building the National Automotive Chip Standards System provide important direction for the standardized and high-quality development of China’s automotive chip industry. They also create new opportunities and higher requirements for power semiconductor companies.

Looking ahead, Hertz will continue to uphold its development philosophy of “Building the Future with Chips, Advancing through Innovation.” The company will remain deeply committed to the power semiconductor sector, strengthen technological innovation and quality development, and strive to provide efficient and reliable power semiconductor products for new energy vehicles, automotive electronics, and other high-end applications, contributing to the advancement of China’s semiconductor industry.