China's Ministry of Industry and Information Technology announced on August 4 that the National Standard for Intelligent Connected Vehicles - Autonomous Driving System Safety Requirements has been officially released. The standard will take effect on July 1, 2027.

It applies to Category M and N vehicles equipped with Level 3 and Level 4 (highly automated) driving systems, but does not apply to automatic parking systems. Developed based on the actual needs of China's industry development and regulatory oversight, the standard balances technical feasibility, industrial adaptability, and practical implementation to create a comprehensive safety requirement system with clear guidelines tailored to the country's conditions.

The standard regulates human-machine interaction and user notification requirements to prevent misuse and abuse risks. It requires that the activation and deactivation processes of autonomous driving systems be safe, and specifies protocols for indicating readiness, activation, and deactivation status information and signals. For Level 3 autonomous driving systems, driver takeover capability monitoring functionality is also required.

Additionally, the standard mandates that vehicle manufacturers, beyond providing product instruction manuals, must clearly inform users through channels such as official websites and in-vehicle display terminals about the level of driving automation, capability scope, limitations, control strategies, and user role transitions, to guide users in correct understanding and usage.