Author: Linda Ma

An autonomous vehicle operated by Baidu’s Apollo Go robotaxi service fell into a deep construction pit in southwestern China while carrying a passenger, local media reported on Friday, sparking renewed discussion about the safety of self-driving cars. The incident occurred on Wednesday in Chongqing, according to reports from the Southern Metropolis Daily and Huashang Newspaper. A female passenger was uninjured and was rescued by nearby residents using a ladder. Videos circulating on Chinese social media showed a white vehicle bearing the Baidu Apollo logo at the bottom of what appeared to be a construction trench. A local shop owner told…

Chinese electric vehicle maker Leapmotor will introduce an all-wheel-drive version of its C10 compact SUV in Europe this autumn, featuring 800-volt technology and a dual-motor setup delivering 430 kW of power. The performance variant, available exclusively in the ‘Design’ trim, can accelerate from zero to 100 kph in four seconds. The new variant is powered by two electric motors — one on each axle — and is expected to weigh over two tonnes. It represents a major upgrade from the 400-volt architecture used in previous European C10 models. The 800-volt system is designed to improve charging performance, enabling the battery…

Li Auto shares dropped 5.3% to HK$97.35 in Hong Kong trading on Tuesday, extending their decline to 21.8% since July 21 and pushing the stock into a technical bear market. The fall comes despite the official launch of the Li i8, the company’s first all-electric SUV. The Li i8 debuted on July 29 with three variants—Pro, Max and Ultra—priced between RMB 321,800 and RMB 369,800. The starting price was cut by more than 8% from the company’s initial estimate, a common tactic in China’s competitive auto market, but analysts said the model faced pricing pressure from rival products, including Nio’s…

Nio Inc’s premium small electric vehicle brand, Firefly, will begin its first deliveries in Europe on August 14, starting in Norway and the Netherlands. The rollout marks the brand’s initial step toward building overseas sales, with additional markets expected to follow later this year. The launch coincides with the 10th anniversary of Nio’s global design center in Munich, which has played a central role in shaping the company’s European strategy. Over the past decade, the Chinese EV maker has entered five European markets — Norway, Germany, the Netherlands, Sweden, and Denmark — while developing an ecosystem that includes products, services,…

China’s Dongfeng Motor has unveiled a new strategy to accelerate its transition toward high-tech electric vehicles, with plans to launch solid-state battery models capable of delivering up to 1,000 kilometers of driving range by 2026. The move comes as the automaker consolidates its eπ, Fengshen, and Nano brands into a new subsidiary, Dongfeng eπ Technology. The reorganization, announced during a company event in Wuhan, establishes two distinct product pillars under Dongfeng Motor. Dongfeng eπ will focus on advanced new-energy vehicles, while Dongfeng Fengshen will continue to develop internal combustion engine and hybrid models. The strategy is aimed at strengthening the…

Chinese battery makers CATL and BYD strengthened their dominance in the global electric vehicle (EV) battery market in the first half of 2025, as overall installations climbed by more than a third, data from SNE Research. Global EV battery installations reached 504.4 gigawatt hours (GWh) in January-June, up 37.3% from 367.4 GWh in the same period last year. CATL led the market with 190.9 GWh, a 37.9% share, up from 37.7% a year earlier. BYD followed with 89.9 GWh, giving it 17.8% of the market, up from 15.4% in the first half of 2024. South Korea’s LG Energy Solution ranked…

SAIC Motor’s electric vehicle unit IM Motors has launched its first extended-range electric vehicle (EREV) system, as automakers compete to attract Chinese consumers seeking long-range alternatives to battery-only models. The system, named Hengxing, features a 66-kWh battery pack offering up to 450 km on the China Light-Duty Vehicle Test Cycle (CLTC) and supports 800-volt high-voltage fast charging. When fully fueled and charged, the vehicle’s total range can reach 1,500 km. IM Motors said the design provides up to three times the range of certain comparable battery electric vehicles (BEVs) with similar battery capacity. The battery, supplied by CATL, is the…

Zeekr Group said on Friday it delivered 44,193 vehicles in July 2025, representing a 19.7% increase from a year earlier and a 2.7% rise from June. The figure includes deliveries across both its Zeekr and Lynk & Co brands. The Zeekr brand accounted for 16,977 units, while Lynk & Co delivered 27,216 units in the month. The company also reported surpassing 2 million cumulative users. See also: Geely to Launch Five New Hybrid Models in H2 2025 The update follows a series of developments in July, including the introduction of Zeekr’s Super Hybrid Technologies on July 9. Built on the…

Onvo, the sub-brand of Chinese electric vehicle maker Nio, officially unveiled its L90 full-size SUV, entering the mainstream family SUV segment with a model featuring luxury-level specifications, advanced powertrain technologies, and an emphasis on spaciousness and comfort. The vehicle starts at 179,800 yuan ($25,000) under Nio’s battery-as-a-service (BaaS) plan. The L90 is built on a 900V high-voltage architecture and features the same rear electric motor used in Nio’s premium ET9 model. The rear-wheel-drive version offers a driving range of up to 605 km under China’s CLTC cycle, while the all-wheel-drive version reaches 570 km. Onvo says the L90 can charge…

BYD has introduced its compact electric SUV, the Yuan Up, to the Malaysian market under the name Atto 2, marking the model’s global debut in a right-hand drive configuration. The vehicle went on sale in Malaysia on July 24, the company announced on Tuesday. The Atto 2 is offered in a single Premium variant with a starting price of 100,000 Malaysian Ringgit ($23,630). It features a 51.13-kWh lithium iron phosphate battery, delivering a New European Driving Cycle (NEDC) range of 410 kilometers—exceeding the battery capacity of its Chinese and European counterparts. BYD said the model launch builds on the company’s…

Contemporary Amperex Technology Co. Ltd. (CATL) has broadened the use of its battery technology beyond electric vehicles and aircraft with the debut of China’s first all-electric tourist passenger ship, the Yujian 77, which set sail in Xiamen Bay on July 25. The 49-meter vessel was jointly developed by CATL and its partners and is equipped with the company’s marine battery system. According to CATL, the operation of the ship demonstrates the practicality of using pure electric propulsion for short-distance maritime travel while delivering a zero-emission and low-noise passenger experience. The ship features CATL’s Cell To Pack (CTP) technology and integrated…

WeRide has received a permit from Shanghai’s municipal government to operate Level 4 (L4) autonomous Robotaxi services in the city’s Pudong New Area, the company said on Saturday. The permit was announced during the 2025 World Artificial Intelligence Conference (WAIC). The approval allows WeRide, in collaboration with Chery Group and Jinjiang Taxi, to launch fully regulation-compliant Robotaxi ride-hailing services on public roads in Shanghai. This marks WeRide’s entry into its tenth city worldwide, following operations in cities across China, the Middle East, and Europe. As part of WAIC 2025, the partners also launched a mass-produced, pre-installed L4 Robotaxi shuttle service…

BYD’s premium brand Denza is preparing to launch its new plug-in hybrid SUV, the N8L, in the second quarter of 2026, Chinese automotive news outlet Yiche reported Friday. The upcoming model will join the Denza N9 in targeting the high-end sport utility vehicle segment. The Denza N8L is a six-seat plug-in hybrid electric vehicle (PHEV) that entered the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology’s (MIIT) catalog in May, revealing specifications such as a length of 5,200 mm, width of 1,999 mm, and a height of either 1,820 or 1,990 mm, with a wheelbase of 3,075 mm. The model is powered…

Chinese electric vehicle manufacturer Xpeng has begun localized production in Indonesia, delivering its first domestically assembled X9 multi-purpose vehicle (MPV) and launching its overseas localization strategy. The announcement was made at the 2025 Gaikindo Indonesia International Auto Show (GIIAS), where Xpeng confirmed the milestone marks the company’s first localized assembly operation outside China. The X9, a right-hand drive model, was assembled in Indonesia through a Completely Knocked Down (CKD) production process, which involves importing disassembled vehicle kits for local assembly. https://twitter.com/XPengMotors/status/1948020756983476643 Alongside the X9, Xpeng also exhibited its G6 sport utility vehicle, the company’s flying car prototype, and the humanoid…

Chinese electric vehicle maker Leapmotor will collaborate with state-owned FAW Group to co-develop new EV models based on Leapmotor’s B platform, with a focus on overseas markets, local media outlet Jiemian reported, citing unnamed sources familiar with the matter. The cooperation, the first publicly detailed report since the companies signed a strategic memorandum in March, resembles the structure of Leapmotor’s existing partnership with Stellantis, according to the report. Leapmotor and FAW signed the agreement on March 3 in Changchun, Jilin province, aiming to jointly develop new energy passenger vehicles and collaborate on key components. FAW had previously considered acquiring a…

Chinese battery manufacturer Svolt Energy is set to launch trial production of its first-generation semi-solid-state batteries in the fourth quarter of 2025, with plans to supply the 140 Ah cells to BMW’s Mini brand starting in 2027, according to Chinese media reports citing company chairman Yang Hongxin. The semi-solid-state batteries, which use a hybrid electrolyte combining both solid and liquid elements, are expected to deliver enhanced safety and energy density compared to conventional lithium-ion cells. Svolt’s first-generation cells will offer an energy density of 300 Wh/kg in a soft-pack format, while a second-generation version aims for 360 Wh/kg, according to…

Chinese electric vehicle (EV) manufacturer Nio said on Tuesday it has produced its 800,000th mass-produced vehicle, a key milestone in its growth strategy as it gears up for the official launch of the Onvo L90 SUV later this month. The 800,000th vehicle, an L90 SUV under its new mass-market sub-brand Onvo, was assembled at Nio’s F1 facility in Hefei, Anhui province, the company said in a statement. Deliveries of the L90 are scheduled to begin on August 1, following its official launch on July 31. See also: Nio Battery Swaps Surpass 80 Million as Network Expands Across China https://twitter.com/NIOGlobal/status/1948230297822138802 “The…

IM Motors, the electric vehicle unit of SAIC Motor, is preparing to launch its first extended-range electric vehicle (EREV) system, with a formal unveiling scheduled for August 1. The move signals the brand’s entry into the hybrid EV segment, following a broader trend among Chinese automakers adapting to evolving consumer preferences. The company’s new extended-range powertrain, described as a “super extended-range” system, is designed to deliver significantly longer driving distances through high-capacity batteries. The upgraded IM LS6 and an all-new six-seat SUV, the IM LS9, will be the first models equipped with the technology. These vehicles are expected to enter…

U.S.-listed shares of Zeekr Group, the electric vehicle brand backed by Geely, fell more than 4% in pre-market trading on Monday, following reports alleging the company had overstated its sales figures in recent years. Reuters reported on Sunday that Zeekr had been insuring unsold “0-kilometer used vehicles” in order to record them as sales ahead of actual transactions. The approach reportedly enabled the automaker to meet internal sales targets, as official figures are often derived from insurance registration data in China. See also: Geely to Take Zeekr Private at $6.83 Billion Valuation The practice was first highlighted by China Securities…

Nio said that its battery swap service has surpassed 80 million cumulative uses in China, reaching the milestone less than four months after hitting the 70 million mark in April. The electric vehicle (EV) manufacturer reported an average of approximately 97,000 battery swaps per day so far in July. According to the company, a vehicle currently completes a battery swap at one of its stations every 0.88 seconds. Nio operates 3,405 battery swap stations in China, including 1,000 located along major highways. Since the launch of its first swap station in Shenzhen in 2018, the network has delivered more than…