QCraft and HERE Technologies sign MoU to explore European rollout of navigation-assisted driving

An exploratory agreement signed in Munich

QCraft, a China-based autonomous driving and driver-assistance technology company, has signed a memorandum of understanding with HERE Technologies to explore how HERE's map data and location intelligence can be combined with QCraft's navigation-assisted driving technology. The signing took place at HERE's Directions 2026 event in Munich, and was reported by Automotive World, crediting Business Wire, as well as by Gasgoo and MarkLines. ¹²⁶

The stated aim is to accelerate the local validation and rollout of QCraft's intelligent driving solutions in Europe and other international markets. Gasgoo, reporting from Munich, says the agreement was signed by Gang Zhao, Vice President of Business at QCraft, and Jason Jameson, Chief Customer Officer at HERE Technologies, on the main stage of the event. Reporting on the signing date differs: Gasgoo says it took place on October 14, while Gasgoo's daily roundup dates the signing to October 12; the underlying announcement itself carries an October 2026 dateline from Munich. ²³⁴⁵

Both companies describe the MoU as a starting point rather than a completed commercial arrangement. Automotive World, drawing on the Business Wire release, characterises the agreement as exploring the combination of HERE's maps and location data with QCraft's navigation-assisted driving system to speed up local testing and launch beyond China, where QCraft has accumulated its production experience. No production programme, launch date or specific vehicle fitment is confirmed by the announcement. ¹²

Why mapping data matters for navigation-assisted driving

Navigation-assisted driving systems that steer a vehicle along a mapped route depend on precise, current data about lanes, junctions, traffic signs and speed limits. Automotive World notes that these details vary from one European country to the next, which is why localised map data is central to the proposed cooperation. ¹

HERE's scale is a significant part of the rationale. According to the Business Wire release carried by AFP and summarised by Automotive World, HERE's location platform serves 238 million vehicles worldwide, of which more than 63 million use its data for driver assistance or automated driving. The companies say this could ease integration for automakers that already use HERE technology. ¹⁴

Jameson said the partnership would combine QCraft's autonomous driving expertise with HERE's proven location data to enable what he described as safer, more reliable and better locally adapted driving experiences, according to the German-language Business Wire release distributed via AFP. Zhao said localisation is becoming increasingly important as QCraft expands internationally, and that the signing represents a new starting point for bringing autonomous driving to more markets. These are statements from the two companies; no independent assessment of the combined system's performance has been published. ⁴²

European debut in Paris preceded the signing

The MoU followed QCraft's first European demonstration of its urban navigation-on-autopilot system, branded QPilot Urban Navigation on Autopilot (NOA). Automotive World reports that the system was demonstrated on Paris streets during the Paris Motor Show, before the signing in Munich. Gasgoo adds that at the Paris show, which it says opened on October 12, QCraft presented its urban NOA solution for the European market, showcased road-testing results from Paris and offered test rides to automakers and partners. ¹⁵⁴

Gasgoo notes that the cooperation is intended to serve both Chinese automakers expanding overseas and global OEM customers, pairing QCraft's assisted-driving algorithms, NOA solutions and production-deployment experience with HERE's mapping data and location-intelligence capabilities. Gasgoo's plan for next steps says the two companies intend to deepen their cooperation following the MoU and pursue wider deployment of automated-driving technology in global markets, but no committed milestones are disclosed. ²³

QCraft's scale and recognition, with caveats on what is not confirmed

QCraft states that its driver-assistance systems are now installed in more than one million vehicles, according to Zhao's remarks quoted in the Business Wire release. Automotive World reports the company has partnered with more than 10 automakers on over 40 models, maintains a European headquarters in Munich with local teams for research and development, certification and business development, and was founded in 2019 in Silicon Valley. ¹⁴

At the Directions 2026 awards evening, QCraft received the 2026 HERE Horizon Award. According to the Business Wire release carried by AFP, the award recognised QCraft for enabling autonomous driving at global scale through the worldwide introduction of its Urban NOA solution, which forms part of its QPilot end-to-end autonomous driving system. The award was presented by HERE and recognised by the awarding body's own criteria; it is not an independent safety or performance certification. ¹⁴

Several key questions remain unanswered by the announcement. The MoU is a memorandum of understanding rather than a definitive commercial agreement, so no European production launch, named customer programme, vehicle variants, regulatory approval timeline or launch markets are confirmed. Neither company has announced any Australian availability or fitment, and no pricing or rollout dates have been published. Any future deployment would still depend on local validation of the combined mapping and driving system in each market, which is precisely the work the companies say the MoU is intended to accelerate. ¹²⁶

Context: Chinese driver-assistance suppliers look offshore

The agreement sits within a broader pattern of Chinese automotive technology suppliers expanding into Europe. In the same reporting period, Gasgoo's daily roundup separately documented Leapmotor beginning mass production of its B10 SUV at Stellantis' Zaragoza plant in Spain and interiors supplier Antolin opening a global R&D centre in Kunshan, illustrating how Chinese-linked automotive companies are building localised European operations. QCraft's Munich headquarters and its Paris motor show demonstration place it within the same movement of established Chinese production experience toward European validation and service. ⁵¹⁴

For buyers, the significance of the MoU, if it matures, would be in how driver-assistance systems adapt to local road conventions. The companies' own framing, reported by Automotive World and Gasgoo, emphasises locally validated experiences tuned to country-specific lane, junction, sign and speed-limit data. What the combined system would actually deliver in practice, in which vehicles and on what timeline, remains undetermined by the current agreement. ¹²