China has unveiled a mandatory national standard regarding safety requirements for combined driver assistance systems for intelligent and connected vehicles (ICVs), the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology said on July 2.

The standard is scheduled to take effect on January 1, 2027. It was recently approved and released by the State Administration for Market Regulation and the National Standardization Administration.

In recent years, China's ICV industry has entered a period of rapid development. Data shows that since 2026, 70 percent of new passenger vehicles sold in China have been equipped with combined driver assistance systems, while that of models featuring Navigate on Autopilot (NOA) capabilities have exceeded 30 percent.

The newly released national standard fills China's regulatory gap in the safety baseline for combined driver assistance system products. It will provide a key technical basis for industry access, quality supervision, and post-event traceability, playing a vital role in elevating the safety of ICVs and ensuring the healthy and sustainable development of the industry.

Tailored to the country's needs of industrial growth and regulatory oversight, the newly released standard strikes a well-thought-out balance between technical feasibility, product compatibility, and operational practicality.

Taking full account of various product models and technical routes, it sets out tailored safety requirements for three types of combined driver assistance system products: basic single-lane, basic multi-lane, and NOA systems.

In light of China's specific road conditions and traffic features, it sets forth baseline requirements to ensure the safe operation of combined driver assistance systems across multiple dimensions, including functional requirements, data recording, and vehicle manufacturer safety guarantees.

Considering that the core positioning of the system is to assist driving, it outlines requirements for human-machine interaction, instruction manuals, and user training, providing a foundational guarantee for proper collaboration between users and the system.

It also establishes a multi-tiered evaluation methodology encompassing track tests, road tests, and document verification to comprehensively assess the system's safety capabilities.