Black Sesame

What Black Sesame does

Black Sesame Technologies (黑芝麻智能) is a China-headquartered semiconductor company founded in 2016 that designs automotive-grade AI System-on-Chips (SoCs) for intelligent vehicles. The company operates two principal product families: the Huashan series (A1000/L/Pro and the A2000 family) targeting L2 through L4 autonomous driving compute at 58 to 1,000 TOPS, and the Wudang series (C1200, C1236, C1296) — an industry-first automotive cross-domain compute platform that integrates cockpit, driving, gateway, and vehicle control on a single chip. Underlying technology includes self-developed ISP and NPU IP cores (with the Jiuzhao NPU architecture in the A2000 generation), proprietary perception algorithms including BEV+Transformer+NeRF pipelines, and supporting software layers comprising the Shanhai AI toolchain (adopted by 60+ OEMs and Tier-1s) and Hanhai AUTOSAR-compatible middleware. Comprehensive automotive safety and quality certifications (ISO 26262 ASIL-D for chips, RTOS, middleware tools; ISO/SAE 21434; ASPICE CL2; AEC-Q100 G2) underpin mass-production deployment.

The company generates revenue through three streams: (i) hardware sales of automotive SoCs to OEMs and Tier-1 suppliers on a per-vehicle-platform basis; (ii) bundled software, middleware, toolchain, and perception algorithm solutions sold alongside chips; and (iii) IP licensing and customization services to Tier-1s and partners. Go-to-market is enterprise field sales with direct engineering engagement into OEM and Tier-1 platform teams, supplemented by embedded distribution via Tier-1 domain controller partners (ECARX, JOYNEXT, NESINEXT). Customers include Chinese OEMs Geely, Dongfeng, JAC/Sihao, FAW Red Flag, Hycan, and Li Auto, plus global Tier-1s Bosch, Continental, and Aptiv. The company listed on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange in August 2024 (ticker 2533.HK), operates international offices in San Jose and Singapore, and is expanding into adjacent edge AI, robotics, and maritime vision applications via its SesameX platform, the 2026 Yizhi acquisition, and the RMB 500M Wu Yuefeng strategic investment.

Name

Black Sesame

Legal name

黑芝麻智能科技有限公司 (Black Sesame Technologies Co., Ltd)

Website

https://blacksesame.com

Company type

Public

Founded year

2016

Operating status

Ipo

Short description

Black Sesame Technologies designs automotive-grade AI SoCs (Huashan and Wudang families) for autonomous driving and cross-domain vehicle compute, serving Chinese and global OEMs such as Geely, Dongfeng, and FAW, and Tier-1 suppliers including Bosch, Continental, and Aptiv.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Automotive AI Semiconductors

NAICS

Semiconductor and Related Device Manufacturing (334413)

SIC

Semiconductors & Related Devices (3674)

akta.pro primary industry

Automotive & Industrial ICs (ADAS/Powertrain/Factory/Robotics) (HDAHABAD)

akta.pro secondary industries

Automotive & Safety-Certified Processors (ADAS/Domain/ASIL MCUs) (HDAHAJAJ), Compute & Acceleration ICs (CPU/GPU/AI/FPGA/ASIC) (HDAHABAC), Audio, Imaging & Multimedia SoCs (ISP/Codec/Display) (HDAHABAH), Edge AI Hardware & NPUs (SoCs, modules, accelerators) (HDAAAJAC)

Keywords

• Automotive AI chips
• Autonomous driving SoCs
• ADAS computing platforms
• Cross-domain computing chips
• Intelligent vehicle semiconductors

Headquarters

HQ city

Singapore

HQ country

Singapore

HQ region

Asia

Offices8 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Hardware or Manufacturing

Cost components

Technology or R&D, Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Supply Chain

Revenue model

1. automotive semiconductor chip sales: Sale of automotive-grade SoC chips (华山 and 武当 series) to OEMs and Tier-1 suppliers. Chips are designed into vehicles at the OEM level as the core compute engine for ADAS, autonomous driving, and cross-domain functions. Revenue recognized upon chip delivery to customers.
2. SoC-based turnkey solutions and software: 配套的软件工具、中间件、感知算法 and development toolchain (山海, 瀚海) sold alongside chips as part of full-stack solutions. These include BSP SDK packages, neural network toolchains, AUTOSAR software, and safety-certified RTOS. Generates additional revenue per vehicle platform.
3. IP licensing and customization: Customized algorithm development, third-party algorithm porting support, and technology licensing to Tier-1s and partners seeking to build on Black Sesame's chip platforms.

Go-to-market motion3 records

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

Black Sesame designs and sells automotive-grade System-on-Chip (SoC) processors built on proprietary ISP and NPU IP cores for ADAS, autonomous driving (L2 to L4), and cross-domain computing in intelligent vehicles. The portfolio includes the Huashan series autonomous driving chips (A1000, A1000L, A1000 Pro, and A2000 family) and the Wudang series cross-domain compute chips (C1200, C1236, C1296), bundled with the Shanhai AI development toolchain and Hanhai AUTOSAR middleware, and supported by the SesameX robotics platform and Drive BEST turnkey smart-driving solutions. Chips are designed-in at the OEM vehicle platform level and sold to Chinese and global automotive OEMs and Tier-1 suppliers.

Product overview

Black Sesame Technologies is a China-based leader in automotive-grade computing SoCs and intelligent vehicle solutions. The company offers two chip families: 华山 (Huashan) series for autonomous driving applications (A1000, A1000L, A1000 Pro, A2000 family) providing 58-1000 TOPS computing power, and 武当 (Wudang) series for cross-domain computing (C1296, C1236) enabling cockpit, driving, gateway, and vehicle control integration. Supporting products include SesameX robotics platform for embodied AI, 瀚海 autonomous driving middleware, and 山海 AI development toolchain. Solution offerings encompass Drive BEST smart driving solutions, AV Pipeline surround-view ADAS, and AI Full-Stack Robotic Computing Platform. All products maintain ISO 26262 functional safety certification with ISO/SAE 21434 cybersecurity compliance.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• 华山系列 (Huashan Series): High-performance autonomous driving computing chips including A1000, A1000L, A1000 Pro, and A2000 families
• 武当系列 (Wudang Series)
• 山海工具链 (Shanhai Toolchain)
• 瀚海中间件 (Hanhai Middleware)

Products and services

• Huashan A1000 / A1000L / A1000 Pro (华山A1000/A1000L/A1000 Pro) High-performance, low-power automotive-grade SoC for L2+/L3 autonomous driving. The A1000 delivers 58 TOPS (INT8) with integrated ISP, NPU, GPU, and DSP, supporting integrated driving+parking (行泊一体). A1000L targets L2-level and A1000 Pro is the enhanced variant. Designed for OEMs and Tier-1s building ADAS domain controllers in mass-produced passenger vehicles.
• Huashan A2000 Family (华山A2000家族) Next-generation autonomous-driving SoC family with the self-developed Jiuzhao (九韶) NPU architecture supporting mixed-precision compute (INT4/INT8/FP8/FP16/FP32) and Transformer acceleration. Models include A2000N, A2000L, A2000U (700 TOPS), and the flagship A2000X (1000 TOPS) for L3/L4 autonomous-driving workloads.
• Wudang C1296 / C1236 (武当C1296/C1236) Industry-first automotive cross-domain computing SoC platform. C1296 supports multi-domain fusion across cockpit, driving, gateway, and vehicle control; C1236 delivers single-chip NOA. Built on Arm Cortex-A78AE CPU and Mali-G78AE GPU with integrated NPU, ISP, GPU, and DSP. Designed for next-generation EE architectures and central compute units at OEMs and Tier-1s.
• SesameX Robotics Platform (SesameX 机器人平台) Robotics platform enabling embodied AI applications, combining high-performance SoC chips, modular hardware, and a full-stack software ecosystem for real-time AI inference at the edge. Supports autonomous robots, cleaning/inspection/logistics robots, and humanoid platforms with ROS/ROS2 compatibility and SLAM navigation.
• Drive BEST Smart Driving Solution (Drive BEST 智能驾驶解决方案) Scalable smart-driving solution series for OEMs, covering L2 forward cameras, L2+ low- and high-speed fusion, high-end driving domain controllers, and central computing. Sub-products include Drive Brain (L3 multi-sensor), Drive Eye (8MP camera), and Drive Sensing (single-chip integrated driving/parking).
• AI Full-Stack Robotic Computing Platform Full-stack edge AI computing platform for robotics combining high-performance SoC chips, modular hardware, and a software ecosystem. Reported to reduce hardware cost by over 50% versus GPU-based solutions with ROS/ROS2 compatibility and SLAM support. Winner of the Automation SolutionGo 2025 GO! Technology Utilisation award in Singapore.

Quantifiable outcome

• A1000 chip achieves 58 TOPS INT8 compute on a single chip, supporting 16-channel HD camera input and integrated driving+parking functions on one SoC
• +4 more outcomes

Named customers8 records

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration4 records

AI capability11 records

Feature6 records

Partnerships

22 partnerships are on record, tiered minor and core.

• 上实科技 (Shanghai Industrial Technology)minorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 8 June 2026Strategic partnership to build embodied intelligence ecosystem and Hong Kong robotics innovation platform. Deep integration of technology R&D, capital deployment, industrial ecosystem, and cross-border resource advantages around embodied intelligence.
• 东风汽车 (Dongfeng Motor)coreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 24 April 2026Platform-level deep cooperation to create first local cockpit-driving integrated mass production platform (天元智舱Plus). Wudang C1296 chip enables single-chip support for intelligent cockpit, L2+ driving assistance, and APA parking functions. Strategic technology cooperation framework signed covering smart driving, multi-domain fusion computing, and vehicle-road-cloud integration. Dongfeng multiple models to be produced with C1296 by end of 2025.
• 青岛中远海运数智科技有限公司minorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 15 January 2026Black Sesame and COSCO Shipping's subsidiary (数智科技) jointly launched a ship robotic inspection system project, marking Black Sesame's robotics business entry into the maritime and shipping sector.
• 理想汽车 (Li Auto)coreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 26 April 2025Black Sesame officially joined Li Auto's Star Ring OS open-source ecosystem. Deep cooperation on open-source co-building. Black Sesame will perform deep adaptation and performance optimization of Star Ring OS on its full chip platform, jointly promoting open collaboration and industrial innovation in intelligent vehicle underlying technology.
• 如祺出行minorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 24 April 2025Strategic partnership at 2026 Beijing Auto Show to jointly promote local high-performance L4 autonomous driving ecosystem towards large-scale commercial operation. Focus on L4 compute platform local supply chain, autonomous driving algorithm R&D and optimization.
• 天翼交通minorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 22 April 2025Strategic partnership and joint launch of '轻鸿' (Qinghong) integrated sensing-compute machine product at the 16th China International Road Traffic Safety Expo (交博会). Cooperating to accelerate smart transportation development through technology and scenario positive cycle.
• 大陆集团 (Continental)coreTechnology or Integration · 10 January 2025CES 2025: Continental and Black Sesame signed MoU for cooperation in High-Performance Computing Unit (HPC) area to address growing market demand. Continental is a global Tier-1 automotive supplier with deep systems integration capabilities.
• 国汽智控 / Nullmax / 普华基础软件coreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 9 January 2025Four-party alliance: Black Sesame + Guojizizhikong + Nullmax + Puru (普华基础软件). Jointly building high-level intelligent driving product based on Wudang C1236 single chip. Nullmax's BEV no-map solution successfully deployed on C1200 family, achieving NOA, memory driving, and memory parking functions. Puru Basic Software AUTOSAR CP and AP adapted to C1200 family.
• 风河 (Wind River)coreTechnology or Integration · 9 January 2025At CES 2025, announced cooperation with Wind River — a global leader in mission-critical intelligent systems software. Wind River collaborated with Black Sesame on platform-based solution development for Aptiv using Wudang C1296 chip. Wind River provides critical mission software expertise for automotive HPC.
• 傅利叶 (Fourier Intelligence)minorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 9 January 2025CES 2025: Black Sesame, NESINEXT, and Fourier Intelligence jointly demonstrated a general-purpose humanoid robot 'dexterous hand' embodied intelligence hardware product based on Wudang C1200 family chip.
• NullmaxcoreTechnology or Integration · 8 January 2025CES 2025: Major collaboration milestone. BEV no-map solution on C1200 family achieved NOA, memory driving, and memory parking functions, verified in multiple city tests and customer projects. At 2025 Auto Show, released multimodal large model autonomous driving solution based on Huashan A2000 chip.
• 普华基础软件 (Puru Basic Software)coreTechnology or Integration · 8 January 2025Puru Zhixiang (AUTOSAR CP) and Puru Lingxi (AUTOSAR AP) have been adapted to Wudang C1200 family chips. 'Local chip + local software' joint solution for automotive base software. Black Sesame and Puru also in four-party alliance with Nullmax and Guojizizhikong for C1236-based high-level AD product.
• 百度 Apollo (Baidu)coreTechnology or Integration · 20 September 2024Baidu ASD hardware team uses Black Sesame's A1000 chip and open Shanhai development toolchain for domain controller platform development. Bai Zhiyuyan (GM of Baidu ASD Hardware Platform) noted that Black Sesame's open toolchain significantly shortened development timeline compared to international chip suppliers. The cooperation model combining Black Sesame's chip + Baidu's algorithm is expected to win more customers.
• 安波福 (Aptiv)coreTechnology or Integration · 23 April 2024Aptiv developed single-chip cross-domain fusion solution based on Wudang C1296 chip, showcased at CIIE 2024 and CPCA supply chain conference. At 2025 Auto Show, three-party mass production announcement with Dongfeng and NESINEXT for C1296-based platform targeting Dongfeng vehicles by end of 2025.
• LeddarTechcoreTechnology or Integration · 10 January 2024Partnership at CES 2024 to jointly develop and market comprehensive ADAS/AD hardware and software technology for Chinese domestic and global OEM/Tier-1 market. Joint solution combines Black Sesame A1000 SoC with LeddarTech's LeddarVision LVS-2+ surround-view premium highway assist and 5-star NCAP/GSR 2022 AI-based low-level fusion and perception stack. Enables up to SAE Level 2+ driving and parking functions including auto-lane change with 5V5R sensor configuration.
• JOYNEXT / 镁佳科技coreTechnology or Integration · 9 January 2024Strategic cooperation since August 2021 to develop and customize autonomous driving domain controllers and intelligent vehicle platform solutions. JOYNEXT and subsidiary NESINEXT integrate chip R&D capabilities with NESINEXT's automotive foundational software, cockpit technologies, and engineering services. At CES 2024, unveiled nCCU (Central Computing Unit) built on Wudang C1200 Series cross-domain chip. NESINEXT created smart cockpit framework and smart driving AP/CP middleware for intelligent vehicles.
• NESINEXT / 均联智及coreTechnology or Integration · 9 January 2024Subsidiary of JOYNEXT, collaborated with Black Sesame to expedite mass production of central computing products capable of multi-domain fusion. Created CoreFusion cockpit-driving integration software open platform based on Wudang C1296, providing efficient OS-level software foundation, development toolchains, and ecosystem. Partnership further expanded at 2025 Shanghai Auto Show for Wudang C1296-based cockpit-driving integration mass production with Dongfeng vehicles.
• 阿里云 / 斑马智行 (Alibaba Cloud)coreTechnology or Integration · 2 January 2024Deep strategic cooperation signed with Alibaba Cloud and Banma Zhixing. Jointly completed large model onboard chip-level adaptation. Three parties collaborating to develop and promote cockpit-driving fusion solutions for smarter driving experiences.
• 东风汽车 (Dongfeng Motor) - 技术合作框架协议coreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 23 September 2023Technical cooperation framework agreement covering smart driving & perception algorithms, multi-domain fusion computing, and vehicle-road-cloud integration. Building on previous cooperation experience for deeper collaboration and resource sharing.
• 斑马智行 (Banma Zhixing)coreTechnology or Integration · 20 September 2023Strategic cooperation to build cross-domain multi-system baseline on single-chip cross-domain fusion platform. Based on Banma Hypervisor, completed cockpit-driving integration multi-system baseline first version. Banma deployed Banma Hypervisor on Wudang C1296 to build cross-domain application underlying software architecture for driving, cockpit, and vehicle data exchange. At 2025 Auto Show, DeepSeek large model onboard chip-level adaptation completed with Alibaba Cloud.
• ElektrobitcoreTechnology or Integration · 14 February 2022Black Sesame supports Elektrobit's AUTOSAR Classic Platform (CP) and uses EB tresos for AUTOSAR CP software development on its autonomous driving platform. Black Sesame is among the first domestic Chinese ADAS chip companies to utilize AUTOSAR technology. A1000 series chip supports Elektrobit's AUTOSAR CP including OS, BSW, and RTE. At CES 2025, the companies launched a complete Classic AUTOSAR solution based on Wudang C1296 chip.
• BlackBerry QNXcoreTechnology or Integration · 19 January 2022BlackBerry QNX technology selected to power Black Sesame's A1000 autonomous driving chipset. The combination provides a certified software platform with safety and security for mass production vehicles. Black Sesame became the first domestic China-based AI chip manufacturer to receive SGS functional safety compliance certification. A1000 was the first domestically produced ADAS chip to use QNX OS in mass production.

Scale indicators8 records

Recent moves7 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Broad incumbents

• Mobileye: EyeQ family of automotive SoCs powers ADAS in mass-market vehicles globally. Competes with Black Sesame in L2/L2+ ADAS category and increasingly in higher-level autonomous driving domains with SuperVision and Chauffeur products.
• NVIDIA: Dominant incumbent in automotive AI compute with Drive Orin and Drive Thor platforms serving L2+ to L4 autonomous driving. Competes with Black Sesame in the same compute category but at higher price/performance tiers and with established software ecosystem (CUDA, DriveOS).
• Qualcomm: Snapdragon Ride / Snapdragon Digital Chassis platforms target automotive ADAS and cockpit compute. Competes with both Huashan (driving) and Wudang (cross-domain) families, particularly in cockpit-driving integration programs globally.
• Renesas Electronics: R-Car family of automotive SoCs targets ADAS, cockpit, and central compute applications. Long-standing automotive semiconductor incumbent with global OEM relationships; competes with Black Sesame in cross-domain compute and L2+ ADAS categories.
• Texas Instruments: TDA4VM and Jacinto families of automotive processors serve ADAS and cockpit applications across mass-market vehicle programs. Competes with Black Sesame at lower compute tiers and serves as incumbent automotive MCU/processor supplier with deep OEM relationships.

Emerging players

• Ambarella: AI vision SoCs for automotive (CV series) and edge AI applications. Comparable to Black Sesame in CVflow AI processor architecture and edge AI positioning, though with greater focus on computer vision and lower profile in Chinese automotive market.
• Hailo: Edge AI processor company (Hailo-8, Hailo-15) targeting automotive ADAS, robotics, and edge inference. Comparably positioned in high-performance edge AI silicon but focuses more on general edge markets than full automotive stack solutions.

Direct peers

• Horizon Robotics: China-based fabless AI chip designer focused on automotive ADAS and autonomous driving SoCs (Journey 2/3/5 series). Direct competitor in the Chinese automotive AI chip market with overlapping OEM customers and similar positioning around full-stack chip + algorithm + toolchain offerings.
• Huawei (HiSilicon): Through HiSilicon and Intelligent Automotive Solution (IAS) business unit, Huawei develops MDC computing platforms and Kirin-based automotive SoCs. Direct competitor in Chinese OEM market for ADAS/autonomous driving compute, particularly with BAIC, GAC, Changan, and Seres.

Others

• LeddarTech: Perception software and sensor fusion stack provider (LeddarVision) that partnered with Black Sesame to deliver AV Pipeline ADAS solutions. Complementary rather than competing — supplies the AI perception stack that runs on Black Sesame A1000 SoCs.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat6 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/black-sesame-technologies-singapore-pte-ltd

Compliance8 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles10 records

Subsidiaries1 record

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Black Sesame