Why Industry Insiders Say New Intelligent Driving Regulations Won’t Cause Major Turmoil

Why Industry Insiders Say New Intelligent Driving Regulations Won’t Cause Major Turmoil

At this year’s Shanghai Auto Show, a notable shift emerged: automakers that once aggressively promoted "high-level intelligent driving" have made a striking about-face. Now, they cautiously refer to their systems as mere "assisted driving," emphasizing the critical role of shared human-vehicle control . This pivot follows strict new regulations from China’s Ministry of Industry and Information Technology (MIIT), which aim to rein in marketing language for intelligent driving and tighten oversight of over-the-air (OTA) software updates. Even the Ministry of Public Security’s traffic safety research division weighed in, warning that false advertising could lead to legal consequences— including criminal liability —for serious accidents caused by misleading claims. Legal Risks of Exaggerated Claims: Beyond Fines, Criminal Liability Looms Under  Article 28 of China’s Advertising Law , fabricating or overstating assisted driving capabilities—such as labeling a Level 2 system as …