Automotive EMS and ECU Industry Report, 2025

Research on automotive EMS: Analysis on the incremental logic of more than 40 types of automotive ECUs and EMS market segments

In this report, we divide automotive ECUs into five major categories (intelligent driving products, intelligent cockpit products, body electronic products, vehicle controllers and other products) and more than 40 subcategories, and study the BOM cost of each ECU, ECU market, EMS market size, cooperative development models, major players and EMS providers.

Mainstream EMS providers accelerate the layout in the automotive business, and see the revenue of automotive electronics grow rapidly

At present, almost all leading consumer EMS providers at home and abroad have entered the automotive EMS market. By comparing the automotive revenue of some EMS providers in 2023 and 2024, it can be found that the automotive electronics has become one of the fastest growing business segments of each EMS provider.

Luxshare Precision plans to raise the automotive revenue to RMB200 billion in 2035

In 2024, Luxshare Precision's automotive revenue jumped by 48.7% year-on-year to RMB13.76 billion, marking the company's second growth curve. In 2021, Luxshare Precision released its 'Three Five-Year' Strategic Plan. Starting from 2022, Luxshare Precision has officially deployed the automotive parts business on a large scale and enhanced its global competitiveness through deployment. It has made progress in layout:

• In March 2025, Luxshare Precision signed a powertrain and intelligent domain controller project with Wuhu High-tech Industrial Development Zone to dabble in the production and sale of automotive powertrain and intelligent domain controllers
• In March 2025, Luxshare Precision officially started the construction of the high-speed interconnection precision module intelligent manufacturing base in Bao'an, Shenzhen, which will focus on the layout of high-performance optical communication modules and consumer electronics smart terminal modules. As automotive Ethernet evolves toward 10Gbps, the demand for optical modules applied to autonomous driving sensor data transmission has surged. Luxshare Precision has cooperated with many automakers to develop automotive high-speed optical modules
• In December 2024, Luxshare Precision launched the Handan New Energy Vehicle Electronic Parts Industrial Park. With the planned total investment of approximately RMB780 million, the project mainly produces new energy vehicle connection system components and builds an intelligent manufacturing base for new energy vehicle wiring harnesses in North China
• In October 2024, Luxshare Precision reached an agreement with Suzhou Xiangcheng Economic Development Zone to invest RMB12 billion in establishing an automotive parts manufacturing base in Suzhou and producing acoustic electronics and automotive parts. Upon completion, the base will boast the annual output value of over RMB30 billion, and it will become the largest automotive parts production center of Luxshare Precision in China
• In September 2024, Luxshare Precision planned to acquire LEONI, a veteran German automotive wiring harness manufacturer, for EUR525 million (about RMB4.13 billion) to further strengthen its layout in the automotive wiring harness business

The intelligent driving control system R&D and production project invested and built by Luxshare Precision in Guangzhou was completed and put into production in July 2024, realizing the mass production and delivery of multiple products such as intelligent cockpit domain controllers, central domain controllers, Internet of Vehicles terminals, high-voltage wiring harnesses, etc.. The project is mainly operated by Luxrise Technology, a joint venture between Luxshare Precision and GA.

So far, Luxshare Precision has formed a diversified product matrix including intelligent cockpits, intelligent driving, automotive wiring harnesses, automotive connectors, power management products, and body controllers.

DBG provides EMS for Harmony Intelligent Mobility Alliance (HIMA) and Xiaomi Automobile, with the revenue soaring by 126.47% in 2024

In 2024, DBG's automotive electronics revenue swelled by 126.47% year-on-year to RMB1.592 billion, accounting for 23.1% of revenue as the company's second largest income source. DBG expects that in the next five years or so, the revenue contribution of the automotive electronics sector will hit 40%-50%. To achieve this goal, DBG should further accelerate the expansion of its automotive electronics business. It has made progress in layout:

• DBG's Shenzhen Pingshan Manufacturing Base is expected to be put into production in 2025, with the additional capacity of nearly 40 million products (including smartphones/tablets, smart wearables, automotive electronics, new energy products and so on) per year
• In November 2024, DBG announced that it would acquire ALL Circuits, a French EMS provider, and its subsidiary TIS for RMB733 million in cash. As an EMS provider deeply rooted in Europe, ALL Circuits has accumulated rich production experience and high-quality customer resources (including Valeo, Renault, etc.) in the field of automotive manufacturing
• In May 2024, DBG signed a strategic partnership agreement with Saleri to produce electronic water pumps and other automotive thermal management products for the latter.

In the field of new energy vehicles, DBG is mainly an EMS provider of PCBA of automotive electronics and assembly of finished products, involving more than ten product categories such as smart cockpit hardware, power management system, ADAS sensors, body electronic control units, T-BOX, and OBUs.

DBG has successfully entered the supply chain system of Tier 1/Tier 2 suppliers (such as Valeo, Continental, Denso, Saleri, Mitsubishi Heavy Industries) as well as emgering automakers (like Huawei Harmony lntelligent Mobility Alliance (HIMA) and Xiaomi Automobile), providing customers with automotive electronic component manufacturing services.

Since 2022, DBG has provided automotive electronics to its core automotive electronics customer - Huawei, covering EMS for automotive communication modules, chassis, smart cockpits, LiDAR, etc. With the increase in the sales volume of Harmony lntelligent Mobility Alliance (HIMA) and Xiaomi Automobile, DBG's EMS business will maintain a high growth trend in the next few years.

Light ECU EMS: The application of high-end smart lights such as ADB and DLP will drive the EMS market for light controllers to grow

The demand for intelligent automobiles has driven the development of the light industry, enabling lights to land in a variety of personalized and intelligent application scenarios such as assisted driving and intelligent interaction. Unlike traditional lights that only provide basic lighting functions, intelligent lights should integrate multiple functions, deeply fuse data from cameras and radar, interact intelligently with the surrounding environment, and automatically adjust brightness, color temperature, direction, and combine with display functions.

Therefore, automakers pay more and more attention to the intelligent and personalized design of lights. As light controllers are the core components that determine the intelligent performance of automotive lighting, the demand for light controllers is growing.

The market size of light controllers for Chinese passenger cars in 2024 is estimated at about RMB21.79 billion. EMS for light controllers mainly concentrates in high-end intelligent lights such as ADB and DLP. Assuming 34% of light controllers are involved with EMS, the light controller EMS market size for Chinese passenger cars hit RMB7.41 billion in 2024.

Some automakers are promoting the intelligent development of automotive lighting through independent R&D or cooperation, and the competition pattern in light controllers is expected to be dominated by leading suppliers with strong system integration and product development capabilities. At present, there are two common modes in the light controller supply system, namely the vertical integration mode designated by lighting factories and the third-party mode designated by automakers.

Under the vertical integration mode designated by lighting factories, light assembly companies (Tier 1 suppliers) such as Hella, Valeo, Koito, Xingyu, and HASCO Vision develop software and hardware for light controllers, and provide integrated products to automakers through independent production or designated EMS providers. Automakers basically do not directly contact light controller companies (Tier 2 suppliers). At present, light assembly companies such as HASCO Vision and Xingyu Co., Ltd. are extending to the upstream of the light industry chain and they can supply light controllers by themselves. For example, the light controllers and actuators of AITO M9 are designed and developed by Xingyu

Under the third-party mode designated by automakers, automakers enjoy the initiative by individually specifying light controllers and participating in the design and development while designating light assembly. Designated by automakers, third-party independent light controller manufacturers (such as Keboda, TOSPO, Comba Telecom, etc.) directly supply light controllers to automakers or light assembly companies for integration by winning separate bidding invited by automakers. For example, Keboda was designated by Volkswagen Group for the next-generation LED light controller project in 2024, indicating that automakers need more EMS from third-party light controller companies.

LiDAR and ECU EMS: As automotive LiDAR tends to cost less, LiDAR companies outsource the production links with lower added value

LiDAR is mainly produced by LiDAR companies and EMS providers. In the early stage of LiDAR mass production, most companies entrusted third-party EMS providers. Since the production capacity of EMS providers is better than that of LiDAR start-ups, they can quickly ramp up production in the early stage.

1. Light assets: In terms of production, many LiDAR companies prefer the EMS model in the early stage, which can reduce the initial investment in LiDAR. ​​Light assets not only mean less investment, but also allows for flexibility, reducing the risk of trial and error in the early stage of entrepreneurship

2. Higher production capacity: Some LiDAR companies cannot handle a large number of orders received in a short period of time, so they outsource part of them to EMS providers, for example, Cowell is a EMS provider of RoboSense

3. Outsourcing of production links with low added value: For example, Luminar has autonomy through vertical integration of key components, but outsources assembly and testing with lower added value

From the perspective of the LiDAR industry chain, LiDAR EMS is mainly divided into MEMS micro-galvanometer EMS, transceiver module EMS, and assembly EMS.

MEMS micro-galvanometers, the core beam manipulation elements of MEMS LiDAR, are optical MEMS devices that integrate the micro-light reflectors with optical MEMS drivers. MEMS micro-galvanometers can be integrated and produced through semiconductor processes as chips. MEMS EMS is characterized by one device, a process', so MEMS micro-galvanometers are relatively novel, and many new problems should be solved during process introduction and mass production. Currently, domestic EMS companies mainly include SMEI and SMEC.

LiDAR transceiver module EMS providers are mainly optical companies which excel in core technologies, mass production and manufacturing, and global supply chain systems in the fields of optical components and optoelectronic products, and can meet customers' requirements for higher quality, lower costs and large-scale delivery. For example, Sunny Optical, Zhongji Innolight, and Novel Optics have mostly chosen to provide optical components or optical modules for LiDAR companies, and gradually expanded to LiDAR EMS.