New energy vehicles (NEVs) are a key direction for the global automotive industry’s transformation, contributing to green development and injecting new momentum into world economic growth. As the industry shifts towards electrification and intelligence, the challenge lies in promoting collaborative innovation throughout the automotive supply chain to achieve high-quality development.
At the recent China Electric Vehicle 100 Forum (2025), Xin Guobin, Vice Minister of the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology, emphasized the need for automotive enterprises to shift focus from mere scale growth to enhancing both scale and efficiency. He urged a transition from application-level technological innovation to fundamental technological innovation, moving from the automotive sector to a multi-industry integration, and evolving from simply selling products to improving services throughout the entire lifecycle.
Strengthening the foundation of electrification is crucial. In 2024, China’s annual production of NEVs surpassed 10 million units for the first time, accounting for 65% of the global total and marking ten consecutive years in the top position worldwide. Significant breakthroughs in key technologies have further solidified the foundation of electrification, with the average range of electric vehicles nearing 500 kilometers and fast-charging technology enabling 80% charge in just 15 minutes.
Despite these achievements, the industry faces several pressing issues. There is insufficient domestic demand, pronounced “involution” competition, and the supporting infrastructure for mineral resources, battery recycling, and charging facilities requires further improvement. Chen Qingtai, Chairman of the China Electric Vehicle 100 Forum, stressed the importance of steadfastly developing NEVs and enhancing top-level planning. He called for further emphasis on technological innovation, particularly accelerating the research and industrialization of all-solid-state batteries, while improving charging facilities, financial services, maintenance, used vehicle transactions, and battery recycling.
All-solid-state batteries, with advantages in energy density, safety, and cycle life, are leading a new wave of battery technology transformation. Automotive companies are rapidly advancing research and production to enhance their competitiveness in electrification. Deng Chenghao, Vice President of Changan Automobile and CEO of Deep Blue Automobile, announced that a prototype equipped with all-solid-state batteries will debut this year, with mass production expected by 2027.
Addressing challenges such as slow charging is essential for maintaining and expanding China’s NEV industry advantages, which heavily relies on high-quality charging infrastructure. By the end of 2024, the total number of charging facilities nationwide reached 12.818 million units, a 49.1% increase year-on-year, with approximately 38,000 charging piles installed at highway service areas, covering 98% of such areas across the country.
Li Bin, Founder and CEO of NIO, stated that the company will continue to invest in its battery swapping network. Recently, NIO established a battery swapping cooperation agreement with CATL, focusing on collaboration in technology standards and operational network synergy. Huang Xuenong, Director of the Regulatory Bureau of the National Energy Administration, called for accelerating technological innovation to create a vibrant industrial landscape, promoting deep integration between NEVs and the power grid, and advancing technological progress across vehicles, charging stations, and the grid.
The smart upgrade of vehicles is also a priority. Ouyang Minggao, an academician of the Chinese Academy of Sciences and Vice Chairman of the China Electric Vehicle 100 Forum, declared that 2025 will be the year of major breakthroughs in vehicle intelligence. He noted that the emergence of DeepSeek has sparked a wave of interest in large models, with advanced driver-assistance technologies poised to become widespread. However, he cautioned that the current focus on “smart driving” primarily involves L2+ navigation assistance rather than full automation. Multi-modal large models, serving as foundational algorithms, can empower advanced autonomous driving technologies, but issues regarding safety and reliability remain to be addressed.
Several automotive companies have recently unveiled intelligent driving systems. Geely launched its “Qianli Haohan” intelligent driving system, developed using AI and a “world model.” Changan’s “Beidou Tian Shu 2.0” plan aims to introduce 35 new smart vehicles over the next three years. GAC Group‘s Deputy General Manager Gao Rui highlighted that without smart driving capabilities, companies will lack a competitive edge in the future market, as advanced driving assistance systems are increasingly being integrated into mainstream models priced between 100,000 and 200,000 CNY.
As automotive intelligence enters a new development phase, the integration of artificial intelligence and the internet with the automotive sector is deepening. To navigate the complexities of advanced technologies, cross-industry collaboration and innovation are essential for success.
Computing power is vital for the innovation of autonomous driving and intelligent cockpit scenarios. Li Qiang, Vice President of Alibaba Cloud Intelligent Group and General Manager of the AI Automotive Industry, noted that Alibaba Cloud will provide redundant computing power as infrastructure to reduce innovation costs for automakers. In terms of building intelligent connected infrastructure, Wan Gang, Chairman of the China Association for Science and Technology, emphasized the need to develop a cloud computing platform that integrates deep artificial intelligence, enabling collaboration between cloud and vehicle systems to achieve embodied intelligence in smart connected vehicles.
The application of intelligent driving must evolve beyond individual vehicle intelligence to a unified “vehicle-road-cloud” system, allowing “smart vehicles” and “intelligent roads” to empower each other. Today, drivers can view the status of upcoming traffic lights and real-time conditions of green wave sections through navigation. By connecting driving trajectories, navigation data, and real-time traffic signals, a more accurate big data navigation system can be established. For instance, the high-level autonomous driving demonstration area in Beijing has improved traffic efficiency through optimized connected traffic signal control measures.
Wan Gang recommended incorporating smart connected infrastructure requirements into urban renewal and construction plans, promoting efficient collaboration among digital foundations such as 5G communication, roadside perception, and high-precision mapping, while exploring sustainable operational models for new infrastructure. Qin Haixiang, Vice Minister of Housing and Urban-Rural Development, indicated that their ministry is consistently advancing the coordinated development of smart city infrastructure and intelligent connected vehicles, establishing national standards and technical guidelines for urban road intelligent connected infrastructure, and continually enriching the application scenarios of intelligent connected vehicles in urban environments.
Currently, the share of new passenger vehicles with L2-level combined assistance driving functions in China has reached 57.3%. Xin Guobin stated that the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology is hastening the development of a new era plan for the intelligent connected NEV industry. They will accelerate the industrialization of autonomous driving, promote pilot projects for intelligent connected vehicles on roads, improve the standards system, and conditionally approve the production access for L3 autonomous driving models to enhance road traffic safety and refine relevant laws and regulations.
Enhancing internationalization is also crucial. Recently, BMW has collaborated with Huawei and Alibaba to integrate the HarmonyOS vehicle digital ecosystem and explore the use of large language models in intelligent voice interaction. Gao Xiang, President and CEO of BMW Group Greater China, expressed that the company will collaborate with various Chinese tech partners to focus on smart and electric vehicle innovations.
As an increasing number of foreign automotive companies recognize the importance of localizing in the Chinese market, Chinese automakers are also competing on the global stage. Recently, 24 Chinese brands were included in the “2024 Global Automotive Brand Value Top 100” list released by a UK assessment agency. In 2024, China achieved NEV exports of 1.284 million units, significantly contributing to the global automotive industry’s electrification transition.
Zhang Yongwei, Vice Chairman and Secretary-General of the China Electric Vehicle 100 Forum, noted that the pathways for Chinese automakers to participate in global development are becoming increasingly diversified. From early export trade to current localized production and joint ventures, as well as empowering overseas partners and co-creating industrial ecosystems, Chinese car manufacturers are advancing globally with greater innovation and cooperation.
BYD‘s first overseas passenger vehicle base has commenced production, accelerating the development of products with localized brand attributes. Wang Chuanfu, Chairman and President of BYD Company Limited, stated, “Chinese NEVs, whether in technology or industrial chain, are at the world-leading level. We should seize this window period to accelerate international development with higher-level green technologies and products.”
The green transition of China’s automotive industry is significant for the global economy’s low-carbon transformation. To enhance carbon emission management capabilities, Liu Yang, Deputy Director of the Climate Change Department of the Ministry of Ecology and Environment, suggested strengthening international cooperation through open collaboration to promote key technological and model innovations. Additionally, it is crucial to expedite the development of carbon footprint accounting standards and foundational data support for NEVs, power batteries, and electric motors.
Currently, the global automotive industry faces unprecedented challenges. Zhang Yongwei emphasized, “Building a mutually integrated global automotive supply chain system is foundational for global cooperation.” The next step is to promote mutual recognition and connectivity of new energy intelligent vehicle service systems and establish a secure, orderly, and cooperative automotive data collaboration mechanism.
Sheng Qiuping, Vice Minister of Commerce, highlighted the need to deepen trade and investment cooperation in the automotive industry, supporting automotive and parts manufacturers in strengthening international collaboration, establishing marketing networks and after-sales service systems overseas, and enhancing capabilities for overseas operations and services.
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