Introduction

The 2026 Yuelu Conference took place in Changsha from September 23-24, with the opening ceremony and Yuelu Forum held on September 24 at the 'Cloud Brain' of the World Computing·Changsha Intelligent Valley.

Under the theme 'Smart Convergence in Xiangjiang, Empowering the Future,' the conference featured 10 thematic forums covering cutting-edge sectors such as AI+Youth Entrepreneurship, AI+Robotics, AI+Advanced Manufacturing, AI+Brain-Computer Interfaces, and AI+Future Cities. An AI+Innovation and Entrepreneurship Exhibition was also held concurrently.

A decade ago, when Cheng Wei, founder, chairman, and CEO of Didi Chuxing, stated at the Yuelu Summit that 'self-driving vehicles will arrive much earlier than most people imagine,' many in the audience took it as a mere formal remark.

Today, functional autonomous vehicles navigate streets and alleys, handling commutes, deliveries, and security patrols—turning what was once science fiction into a tangible daily reality for Changsha residents.

(For further reading, click: As the 2025 Internet Yuelu Conference Approaches, Changsha Accelerates Autonomous Driving: Legislation Leads, Scenarios Break Through, Aiming to Be the Top Intelligent Connected City in Central China?)

I. From Yuelu Summit to Yuelu Conference: A Decade-Long Commitment in Changsha

The Yuelu Conference originated from the Internet Yuelu Summit, founded in 2014.

On September 20, 2014, spearheaded by Hunan-based entrepreneurs such as Hugo Shong, William Yao, and Li Xinyu through the 'Huxiang Club,' the inaugural Yuelu Summit opened at the millennium-old Yuelu Academy under the theme 'The World at Your Fingertips, Achieving Dreams.'

Since then, the phrase 'Yuelu in spring, Wuzhen in winter' has become an industry saying.

The summit's themes have evolved over the years:

In 2015, it focused on 'Mobile Internet+';

In 2017, the theme was 'Mobile Innovation, Flourishing Here';

In 2018, it shifted to 'Smart Connectivity';

In 2019, it specified 'Intelligent Connected Vehicles, Flourishing Here';

In 2020, 'Digital Economy' took center stage.

By 2026, it upgraded to the 'Yuelu Conference,' introducing a dedicated segment on future industries, focusing on cutting-edge fields such as AI+Robotics, Advanced Manufacturing, and Brain-Computer Interfaces, systematically showcasing Changsha's achievements and innovations in nurturing future industries.

It was at the 2017 Yuelu Summit that Cheng Wei, founder and CEO of Didi Chuxing, declared from the stage: 'The next 20 years will belong to artificial intelligence, and self-driving vehicles will arrive much earlier than most people imagine.'

At the time, many in the audience dismissed it as a formal remark, given the numerous hurdles—sensor costs, road infrastructure, and regulatory standards—standing between L4 autonomous vehicles and real-world deployment.

But Changsha didn't wait.

II. A Decade of Roadbuilding: From 12 to 1,107 Kilometers, Laying a Solid Foundation

In 2016, the Xiangjiang New Area incorporated the intelligent connected vehicle industry into its development blueprint.

In June 2018, the Xiangjiang New Area's intelligent system test zone, featuring 12 kilometers of test roads and 78 intelligent driving test scenarios, officially opened. In November of the same year, it was approved as the National Intelligent Connected Vehicle (Changsha) Test Zone.

By February 2025, Changsha released its fifth phase of intelligent connected vehicle test roads, adding 732.55 kilometers to reach a total of 1,107.1 kilometers (one-way), covering urban arterials, park roads, and extending to key areas such as Changsha Railway Station, Changsha South Railway Station, and Huanghua International Airport.

Intersections are equipped with LiDAR and edge computing units, providing centimeter-level positioning and millisecond-level responses for vehicles.

Over the past decade, Changsha has secured five national 'gold-lettered plaques': the National Intelligent Connected Vehicle Test Zone, the National Vehicle Networking Pilot Zone, the National Intelligent Connected Vehicle Quality Supervision and Inspection Center, the Pilot City for Coordinated Development of Smart City Infrastructure and Intelligent Connected Vehicles, and one of the first national 'Vehicle-Road-Cloud Integration' pilot cities.

As of 2026, the Xiangjiang New Area has issued 633 test codes for functional autonomous vehicles, explicitly allowing commercial pilots with exclusive codes.

On April 1, 2026, the 'Changsha Regulations on the Development of Autonomous Vehicles' took effect, formalizing the legal and regulatory framework for self-driving technology.

From ' I dare not let the car go on the road ' (not daring to let vehicles on the road) to ' By using the code, one can legally operate commercial operations ' (legal commercial operations with a code), Changsha has spent a decade solidly laying the groundwork in roads, regulations, and standards—avoiding sensationalist demonstration projects.

III. Daily Life on the Streets: Changsha Residents' Lives Quietly Taken Over by Autonomous Vehicles

In the morning, commuters in Yuelu High-Tech Zone board intelligent driving micro-circulation buses.

This 10.5-kilometer shuttle route connects park enterprises like Liandong U Valley and Science and Technology Park, directly reaching Shantang Metro Station. By mid-May 2026, it had served nearly 20,000 commuters.

At noon, opening the 'Didi Delivery' mini-program, entering the autonomous vehicle portal, and filling in the pickup address and cargo details, an Xingshen Intelligent L4 autonomous delivery vehicle arrives at the designated location.

The sender scans the code to open the compartment and load the goods, while the recipient retrieves them using a pickup code—all without human intervention.

Xingshen Intelligent currently has about 5,000 autonomous vehicles in operation, with over 200 deployed in Changsha and plans to increase to 500 by the end of 2026, building the largest autonomous delivery fleet in Central China.

Services cover fresh produce merchants at Changsha Haijixing Market and pharmaceutical deliveries for Laobaixing Pharmacy.

At night, 'air-ground integrated' autonomous patrol vehicles conduct 24/7 security patrols in scenic areas like Yueli Island, May First Square, and Yanghu Wetland Park, as well as multiple industrial parks, expanding traditional patrol coverage more than tenfold.

Changsha has achieved thousands-scale demonstration applications of intelligent connected vehicles, covering six major scenarios: connected passenger vehicles, connected buses, autonomous buses, connected fire trucks, autonomous taxis, and urban autonomous delivery.

On September 19, the third Intelligent Driving 'Hall of Fame' Challenge kicked off at the National Intelligent Connected Vehicle (Changsha) Test Zone.

(For further reading, click: Today, autonomous vehicles from Wenjie, Xiaomi, Tesla, Neolix, Baixiniu, JD.com, Jiushi, Innovusion, and Zhixinyuntu compete in Changsha's third Intelligent Driving 'Hall of Fame' Challenge)

Xiaomi, Tesla, Wenjie, Tengshi, and other home-use intelligent driving models competed alongside over ten autonomous vehicle companies, including Neolix, Jiushi, Baixiniu, Innovusion, and JD Logistics, in a closed-book exam:

Obstructed child 'ghost probes,' pedestrians crossing at intersections, obstacles dropped by preceding vehicles, and overturned vehicles blocking lanes—all scenarios unscripted and unrehearsed, relying solely on the vehicles' algorithms for judgment.

The results of the 'Hall of Fame' Challenge will be unveiled at the Yuelu Conference—stay tuned!

IV. Confidence Lies Not in the Conference Hall, But on 1,107 Kilometers of Open Roads

Many cities are developing intelligent connected vehicle industries, but Changsha has taken a different approach: first building a testing foundation, then gathering the industrial chain, and finally opening real-world scenarios for companies to refine their products.

Companies like Xingshen Intelligent, which grew up in Changsha Economic and Technological Development Zone, have just been recognized as national-level 'Little Giant' enterprises in specialized and sophisticated manufacturing. They have accumulated over 600 global partners, achieved regular operations in more than 300 cities, logged cumulative commercial mileage exceeding 100 million kilometers, and expanded their products to overseas markets like Vietnam and the Netherlands.

Yuelu High-Tech Zone has attracted 143 chain enterprises, with industrial output reaching RMB 8.5 billion in 2025.

Changsha's goals for 'vehicle-road-cloud integration' are clear:

By 2026, establish the first application ecosystem demonstration benchmark in Central China, surpass RMB 100 billion in industry scale, connect over 10,000 intelligent connected vehicles, achieve full C-V2X network coverage across 1,450 square kilometers of pilot areas, and cultivate over 550 cluster enterprises.

Simultaneously, it will advance the 'Ten Cities, Ten Vehicles' data interconnection demonstration, collaborating with cities like Shanghai, Hangzhou, Chengdu, Hefei, and Wuxi. Linked with the Xiangjiang New Area, it will coordinate with Zhuzhou and Xiangtan to jointly build a smart connected vehicle ecosystem radiating across Central and South China.

In summary, Autonomous vehicles have arrived (Autonomous Vehicles Are Here) believes:

The 2026 Yuelu Conference features 10 thematic forums covering cutting-edge sectors like AI+Robotics, AI+Advanced Manufacturing, and AI+Future Cities, and brings the AI Innovation and Entrepreneurship Exhibition directly to the venue.

But for Changsha, hosting the conference has never been the goal. The real answers lie not in the conference speeches but in the over a thousand autonomous vehicles silently handling deliveries, patrols, and commutes.

Every kilometer traveled by autonomous vehicles is the city's most tangible footnote to the phrase 'the future is here.'

What do you think? References: Media reports from Changsha High-Tech Zone official WeChat, Changsha Evening News, Xingsha Times, Hunan Xiangjiang New Area, IT Home, etc.