Phate Zhang

Volkswagen's deal with Xpeng could be the first of many strategic partnerships between global automakers and Chinese EV startups, Morgan Stanley said.

It's another sign that China's auto industry is changing rapidly and becoming hyper competitive, forcing major changes at traditional OEMs, Edison Yu's team said.

While Xpeng surged 26.69 percent in the US, Nio also rose 10.58 percent, Li Auto was up only a modest 3.56 percent -- why?

Xpeng CEO said he looks forward to working with Volkswagen to bring the best technology and products to the world. Volkswagen China CEO said the two share a common vision for the future of mobility.

Li Auto's direct offline stores will increase to more than 800 next year, more than doubling the current number, according to local media.

Through Volkswagen's partnership with Xpeng and Audi's with SAIC, Volkswagen is strengthening its position in the Chinese auto market, the German auto giant said.

Xpeng and Volkswagen will initially co-develop two B-segment BEVs sold under the Volkswagen brand in the Chinese market using Xpeng's G9 platform and ADAS software, with production expected to begin in 2026.

Li Auto validated the solid-state battery option for more than half a year, but gave up because the cost of the pack alone was close to RMB 300,000, according to local media.

At the end of 2022, Nio had 26,763 full-time employees, higher than Li Auto's 19,396 and Xpeng's 15,829.

Great Wall has sued six bloggers for between RMB 2 million and RMB 5 million each, just after BYD sued another blogger the day before.