BYD has increased the price of its “God’s Eye B” LiDAR-based advanced driver assistance system option from 9,900 yuan (1,400 USD) to 12,000 yuan (1,660 USD), citing rising global storage hardware costs as the main driver. The adjustment takes effect on May 1, 2026, while customers who place deposits before April 30 retain the original pricing, according to Sina.
The change applies across selected models from BYD’s Dynasty, Ocean, and Fang Cheng Bao product lines, depending on configuration.
Rising storage costs pressure ADAS systems
BYD stated that the adjustment reflects “significant increases in global storage hardware costs.” The system relies heavily on high-speed memory to process LiDAR point clouds, run onboard models, and store driving data.
Industry data shows automotive-grade DRAM and NAND prices have surged sharply since late 2025, driven by AI infrastructure demand and constrained semiconductor supply.
A broader industry report noted that DRAM contract prices rose nearly 90% in Q1 2026 alone, with some segments seeing even larger spikes.
Memory chip volatility now central to ADAS cost structure
The pricing adjustment comes as memory chip volatility has become a structural issue for automotive software stacks. A recent CNC analysis noted that memory volatility has now surpassed battery cost fluctuations in its impact on autonomous driving rollout timelines.
Another CNC report highlighted growing calls from industry executives for standardisation of chips and batteries to reduce cost pressure across EV platforms, including ADAS compute hardware.
Scaling data load increases hardware demand
BYD reported that its “God’s Eye” system is installed in over 2.85 million vehicles as of March 2026, generating approximately 180 million km of driving data per day. The scale improves algorithm training but also increases demand for onboard storage and processing hardware.
Industry-wide cost pass-through begins to appear
Analysts note this is one of the first visible cases in which rising semiconductor costs are reflected directly in optional ADAS pricing rather than absorbed by automakers.
A recent semiconductor market report shows AI data centres now consume a dominant share of global memory output, tightening supply for automotive use cases.
Industry context
The memory chip cycle has become a key cost driver in the EV industry. Prices for DRAM and NAND have entered a multi-year upcycle driven largely by AI infrastructure demand, with analysts projecting elevated pricing conditions potentially lasting into 2027.
As a result, automotive ADAS systems relying on LiDAR and high-bandwidth processing are increasingly exposed to semiconductor cost volatility.
