Former Huawei employees start a business on steer-by-wire chassis, participated in drafting national standards, received investment from Songhe and Sugaoxin | 36Kr exclusive 前华为员工创业线控底盘，曾参编国标，获松禾、苏高新投资丨36氪首发

Steer-by-wire (SBW) may seem like a trendy technical term to ordinary car owners, but for the industry, it is an indispensable "neural center" for Level 3 and above autonomous driving. Replacing the cold mechanical connection between the steering wheel and the wheels with electrical signals means redefining the entire vehicle's control logic, safety redundancy, and design freedom. This is not an upgrade—it’s a reconstruction. The problem is that this reconstruction has long been tightly controlled by international giants like Bosch and ZF. Domestic manufacturers may secure a foothold in conventional electric power steering (EPS), but once they enter the high-load, high-safety-grade realm of R-EPS and steer-by-wire, they hit barriers everywhere. MilliSecond Control’s founder, Li Jie, with his career trajectory spanning SAIC, NIO, Huawei, and JIDU—especially his role as a joint lead reviser of the new national standard for SBW—is essentially a microcosm of China’s intelligent automotive industry evolution. The team’s accumulation of over 50,000 kilometers of real-world testing during their time at JIDU is even more of a rare "hard currency" domestically. This explains why capital is so eager: they are not buying the present, but a possible window of time to narrow the gap with giants.

However, beneath the halo, the challenges are sharply unrelenting. Li Jie’s mention of system-level design challenges like "redundancy" and "functional safety" reveals the real pain points of the domestic industry chain. They can make simple components but not complex systems; they can achieve functionality but struggle to meet ASIL-D functional safety requirements. This is not just MilliSecond Control’s problem—it’s the "glass ceiling" that the entire cohort of Chinese automotive Tier 1 suppliers encounters while climbing upward. More realistically, even if technical hurdles are cleared, the mountain of cost still looms ahead. Currently, steer-by-wire systems are 30% more expensive than traditional EPS—a fatal flaw in China’s fiercely price-competitive auto market. The company’s proposed cost-reduction path—scaling up, domestic substitution, and technological iteration—sounds appealing, but each step is fraught with thorns. A 5% penetration rate by 2026? Narrowing costs by 2028? These projected figures seem more like wishful thinking; real industry progress is often far more prolonged and winding.

Thus, MilliSecond Control has chosen an exceedingly "cunning" yet pragmatic approach: instead of directly confronting the complete steering system, they first target the "Smart Control Module (PPK)" with the highest technical barrier—the motor and control unit. This is akin to seizing the commanding heights before storming a city—a smart move. By establishing a foothold in the core module, building technological and client trust, they then plan to expand to a full-stack solution. This "point-to-surface" strategy is a classic playbook for small companies to survive and even overturn the competition in a track dominated by giants. The good news is, they have already entered the supply chain of a leading North American new energy vehicle manufacturer and completed their first project delivery. This critical first step means their technical solution has at least passed the initial scrutiny of a demanding international carmaker.

But challenges come with it. The founder asserted that only automakers with annual sales exceeding 3 million vehicles would find it cost-effective to develop steer-by-wire in-house, making external procurement the mainstream. This is logically sound, yet it also reveals a "passive survival philosophy" of a supply chain company. As automakers face immense pressure toward full-stack smart development, steering systems, as core chassis components, hold undeniable strategic importance. Giants like Tesla undoubtedly possess both the will and capability to develop in-house. MilliSecond Control’s positioning—"only doing the hardest module, serving all players"—maximizes market potential but also partially places their destiny on automakers’ openness and their own modules’ irreplaceability. Whether the future will be one of collaborative symbiosis or gradual marginalization amid automakers’ in-house development wave remains unclear.

The investors’ statements are filled with long-term faith in the track and endorsement of the team’s capabilities. Whether it’s Songhe Capital’s emphasis on "system-level capability," Suzhou High-tech Zone’s focus on a "scarce team," or Houxue Capital’s appreciation for "commercial vision," all point to the same logic: on the steer-by-wire track—technology-intensive, long-cycle, requiring sustained investment—a formed, battle-tested, and even rule-making team is, in itself, the most worthy asset to bet on. This may symbolize the maturation of China’s hard-tech investment landscape, moving from early conceptual frenzy to greater pragmatism—no longer listening to stories, but seeing whether the team can forge a path through the true deep waters.

Therefore, MilliSecond Control’s latest financing round is far more than a financial update for a startup. It is more like a flare, marking a new strategic position in China’s intelligent automotive chassis supply chain’s upward advance. The road ahead is long—cost, reliability, and scaling each pose formidable battles. But at least, someone has already steadied themselves at the starting line and secured the supplies to keep running. Whether they can ultimately become "a vital participant in the localization process" will be judged by time with both its sharpness and fairness. The market never believes in haloed backgrounds—only in the stable, reliable products that roll off the final production line.

融资消息像一枚投入水面的石子，涟漪之外，真正值得玩味的是中国智能汽车产业链在“卡脖子”环节上那种急切、务实又略带焦虑的突围心态。毫秒智控，成立仅一年就拿下两轮数千万融资，投资方从厚雪资本到松禾、苏高新，押注的显然不是一个简单的初创公司，而是一张可能撬动线控转向国产化杠杆的“稀缺门票”。

线控转向（SBW）这东西，对普通车主而言或许只是个时髦的技术名词，但对产业而言，它确实是L3级以上自动驾驶绕不开的“神经中枢”。方向盘和车轮之间那根冷冰冰的机械连接一旦被电信号取代，意味着整车的控制逻辑、安全冗余和设计自由度都将被重新定义。这不是升级，是重构。问题在于，这种重构长期以来被博世、采埃孚等国际巨头牢牢攥在手心。国内厂商在常规的电动助力转向（EPS）领域或许能挣得一席之地，但一进入高负载、高安全等级的R-EPS和线控转向腹地，便处处碰壁。毫秒智控的创始人李杰，其背景履历——从上汽、蔚来到华为、集度，特别是作为线控转向新国标修订的联合牵头人——几乎就是一张中国智能汽车产业变迁的微缩地图。团队在集度时期积累的超5万公里实测里程，更是国内独一份的“硬通货”。这解释了资本为何如此心急：他们买的不是现在，而是一个有可能缩短与巨头差距的时间窗口。

不过，光环之下，挑战尖锐得毫不客气。李杰在对话中提到的“冗余”和“功能安全”系统级设计难题，道出了国内产业链的真实痛点。能做简单部件，但做不了复杂系统；能实现功能，但难以满足ASIL-D级的功能安全要求。这不仅是毫秒智控一家要面对的，是整个中国汽车Tier1群体向上攀爬时遇到的“玻璃天花板”。更现实的是，即便技术通关，成本这座大山也横亘在前。当前线控转向系统比传统EPS贵30%，这在价格战白热化的中国汽车市场是致命的。公司提出的降本路径——规模化、国产替代、技术迭代——听起来很美，但每一步都布满荆棘。2026年渗透率5%？2028年成本收窄？这些预测数字更像是一厢情愿的乐观时间表，真实的产业爬坡往往比这漫长、曲折得多。

于是，毫秒智控选择了一条极为“狡猾”又务实的路径：不直接硬刚转向系统总成，而是先从技术壁垒最高的“智控模组（PPK）”切入，也就是电机电控单元。这就像攻城先打制高点，聪明。先在核心模块上站稳脚跟，建立技术和客户信任，再图谋全栈。这种“由点及面”的策略，在巨头林立的赛道里，是小公司存活乃至逆袭的经典打法。好消息是，他们已经切入了北美新能源头部车企的供应链，并完成了首个项目交付。这是关键的敲门砖，意味着其技术方案至少通过了一家挑剔的国际车企的初步验证。

但挑战也随之而来。创始人断言，只有年销量超300万辆的主机厂自研线控转向才划算，因此外采仍是主流。这话在逻辑上成立，却也透露出一种供应链企业的“被动生存哲学”。当车企面临智能化全栈自研的巨大压力时，转向系统作为核心底盘部件，其战略重要性不言而喻。像特斯拉这样的巨头，自研的意志和能力都毋庸置疑。毫秒智控将自身定位为“只做最难的模块，服务所有玩家”，这固然能最大化市场空间，但也意味着将命运部分寄托在主机厂的开放心态和自身模块的不可替代性上。未来是协同共生，还是在车企自研潮中逐渐被边缘化，尚未可知。

投资方的表态则充满了对赛道的长期信仰和对团队能力的背书。无论是松禾资本强调的“系统级能力”，苏高新看重的“稀缺团队”，还是厚雪资本赞赏的“商业视野”，都指向同一个逻辑：在线控转向这条技术密集、周期漫长、需要持续投入的赛道上，一个成建制、有实战经验、甚至参与规则制定的团队，本身就是最值得押注的资产。这或许是中国硬科技投资领域，在经历了早期的概念狂热后，变得更加务实的一个缩影——不再听故事，而是看团队能不能在真正的深水区趟出一条路。

所以，毫秒智控的这轮融资，远不止是一家初创公司的财务消息。它更像一个信号弹，标定了中国智能汽车底盘供应链向上攻坚的一个新据点。前路漫漫，成本、可靠性、规模化，每一关都是硬仗。但至少，有人已经在起跑线上站稳了，并拿到了继续奔跑的补给。至于最终能否成为“国产化进程中的重要参与者”，时间会给出最辛辣也最公正的评判。市场从不相信背景光环，只认最终量产线上稳定可靠的产品。