An intelligence-connected new energy vehicle testing center — recognized as a pilot platform for the low-altitude economy — was launched in Xinfeng county of Shaoguan, in northern Guangdong province, on Friday.

As the first large-scale comprehensive testing ground in China to receive airspace usage rights, the testing center is a collaborative project built by five parties, including China Automotive Engineering Research Institute and GAC Group, a major automobile manufacturer in Guangdong.

With a total investment exceeding 3.6 billion yuan ($520 million), the testing ground marked a significant step forward in the integrated development of intelligence-connected vehicles and the low-altitude economy in the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area.

Leveraging an integrated architecture of low-altitude, testing, and laboratory, the center can accommodate testing needs across multiple domains, including intelligence-connected NEVs and low-altitude aircraft.