Chinese electric vehicle startup CHJ Automotive announced plans to establish an R&D centre in the US by the end of 2018 focused mainly on self-driving technologies.
The company last month raised CNY3bn (US$477m) in a series B round of fundraising and established a joint venture with Chinese ride hailing company Didi Chuxing for the production of smart electric cars in China.
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The company's CEO Li Xiang said the company aims to have a "relatively big R&D team in place in the US by the year-end". He is looking to tap into the US' large pool of hi-tech talent to develop autonomous driving technologies.
Xiang said his company's initial focus is to develop electric vehicles (EVs) tailor-made for Didi Chuxing's ride handling platform to help maximise operational efficiency.
Didi Chuxing's founder and CEO Cheng Wei at the end of last year announced plans to expand its ride handling NEV fleet to 1m units by 2020 from 260,000 units at the end of 2017.
CHJ is also developing a low consumption electric SUV later this year which it plans to market under its own brand.
