BYD cars to come with DJI drones for road overflight and vehicle recording

The world's largest electric vehicle maker BYD has partnered with the biggest drone manufacturer DJI over an integrated on-vehicle drone system expansion.

DJI holds nearly 70% of the global drone market and has models that are aimed at both recreational - like the Mini 3 that can be found on Amazon for less than $500 - or professional use, while BYD surpassed Tesla in EV sales last quarter, and is the world's second-biggest battery maker, too.

The two juggernauts will be announcing the vehicle drone launch system on March 2, and BYD already put out a teaser that says "With eyes that can think, frame every moment of the excitement of traveling."

The phrasing indicates that the on-vehicle drones will be used to record the car's travels or stunts from above, and is a testament to how important drone footage has become in certain situations.

BYD is no stranger to this type of drone integration, as its premium U8 Off-road Master Edition SUV that costs north of $150,000 already carries such a system. The drone option that comes with the U8 off-roader is meant to help the driver "better understand their surroundings," says BYD, and is a thoughtful addition to an SUV that is meant to go out in the boondocks.

The partnership with DJI, however, is aimed at bringing the integrated drone system to more of BYD's vehicles that are further down its price range. BYD recently launched its autonomous driving solution that it called God's Eye and, unlike Tesla's half-baked FSD that just arrived in China, will be offering it for free with its electric cars.

Adding unique extras like the DJI drone system might be aimed at grabbing more market share from Tesla that just released its Model Y refresh in China, by making BYD vehicles even more competitive in terms of pricing and options.