Li Auto i6 makes AD Max driver assistance standard - no subscriptions

Li Auto CEO Li Xiang used his blog to lay out a clear stance: modern cars should come with high-level driver assistance as standard, and no one should be charged extra for it. He said the upcoming Li Auto i6 sedan will include the company’s AD Max suite out of the box, with no fees now or later.

He pointed out that many automakers still sell advanced assistants as paid add-ons, often via pricey subscriptions. As a result, a share of drivers never gets to fully experience the convenience and safety modern intelligent systems can provide. He emphasized that such technology ought to be accessible to everyone and that Chinese advances in artificial intelligence should serve users both at home and abroad.

The Li Auto chief added that AD Max is already among the strongest offerings on the market. Even skeptics, he noted, tend to concede that while it may not be the single best, it sits in the leading group and trails very few competitors. With the company’s VLA Driver AI model evolving, he expects the system’s quality and capabilities to keep improving, and believes more motorists will come to see it as competitive on a global stage.

The promise of assistance features without perpetual paywalls, if sustained, could broaden the appeal of the i6 and nudge rivals that lean on subscription revenue. The message also taps into growing driver fatigue with paid software locks in the cabin, setting a bar the market will be keen to test once the car arrives.