China: E-mobility completed – focus on AI & robotics

Economic Sector Intelligence E-Mobility Fulfilled – China Focuses on Robotics and Artificial Intelligence

2026-03-12 From Henrik Bork | Translated by AI 5 min Reading Time

Related Vendors

Electric mobility is now rolling on its own: China is focusing on autonomous driving, robotics, and artificial intelligence. The car is less a means of transportation and more a technology carrier and test application.

China's government is debating the contents of the 15th five-year plan. The focus will change for the automotive industry.(Image: AI-generated) — China's government is debating the contents of the 15th five-year plan. The focus will change for the automotive industry.
(Image: AI-generated)

China's political leadership has just stamped the electric mobility initiative with "Mission accomplished." The task is completed. The government in Beijing is now focusing on new topics. In short: The focus is shifting to what comes next. Autonomous and connected driving, the integration of the automotive industry with robotics and artificial intelligence, as well as the new billion-dollar market for flying cars.

This summarizes the signals coming from the new five-year plan of the People's Republic for the country's automotive industry. This plan is being discussed at the annual meeting of the National People's Congress (NPC) in Beijing. In a few days, at the end of the session, it is expected to be formally adopted.

Electric Mobility Removed from the Strategic Plan

In the new 15th Five-Year Plan since the founding of the People's Republic of China, electric mobility is no longer counted among the future industries. Its development is considered mature enough to be increasingly left to the market from now on. Industry planners in Beijing are turning their attention to other tasks. The Chinese Premier Li Qiang briefly mentioned in his government report the proud successes of the Chinese automotive industry, whose production of electric vehicles has exceeded 16 million units.

In the part of his speech that addressed the political guidelines for the current and upcoming five years, the traditional automotive industry, including the electric vehicle sector, was hardly mentioned directly. Rather, Beijing now sees the future of its automotive industry, as was made very clear from both the government report and the draft of the Five-Year Plan, as just one part of a larger "intelligent economic sector."

Automotive Industry Viewed in a Larger Context

Planners no longer see the automotive sector primarily as an independent, specialized form of manufacturing industry. Rather, it is viewed as part of new digital ecosystems comprising automated factories, AI, data centers, cloud architectures, and robotics. "The automotive sector is undergoing three major shifts in how it is approached by the Chinese government," says automotive expert Gao Chengyuan from the Guangdong Social Policy Research Association.

First, "the focus has shifted from supporting individual industries to building an ecosystem," the analyst is quoted as saying by the Chinese business journal Zhongguo Jingyingbao. Greater emphasis is now placed on integration with energy systems, transportation infrastructure, and artificial intelligence, according to Gao.

Focus on Mobility, Not Just Cars

Second, the narrative has shifted from a sole focus on new energy vehicles to a broader framework of intelligent devices, the low altitude economy, and future industries. Cars in China are increasingly being redefined not just as more or less electrified means of transportation, but as "mobile intelligent platforms."

Third, the government is now promoting more sophisticated technical standards to make the Chinese automotive industry more competitive internationally and support exports, while also aiming to alleviate international trade conflicts, according to the expert.

Autonomous Driving as the Major Topic

This interpretation aligns with the debate taking place at this year's NPC meeting among delegates from the automotive industry. As every year, several prominent founders and CEOs of automotive manufacturers have come to Beijing to actively participate in the search for the best Chinese automotive policy. "Autonomous driving is undoubtedly one of the hottest topics this year," writes the Chinese automotive portal Gasgoo about the NPC meeting.

Essentially, there is consensus that autonomous driving, AI, and robotics are the major future topics for the industry, according to Gasgoo. However, there are "subtle tensions" among the prominent CEOs regarding how to proceed.

Skipping Level 3

The most radical proposal this year came from He Xiaopeng, founder and CEO of the Chinese electric vehicle manufacturer Xpeng, who has been dedicated to "AI-defined driving" for years. He recommended that the government skip from Level 2 of automated driving directly to Level 4, completely bypassing the third level.

Subscribe to the newsletter now

Don't Miss out on Our Best Content

Business E-mail

Please enter a valid mailadress.

By clicking on „Subscribe to Newsletter“ I agree to the processing and use of my data according to the consent form (please expand for details) and accept the Terms of Use. For more information, please see our Privacy Policy. The consent declaration relates, among other things, to the sending of editorial newsletters by email and to data matching for marketing purposes with selected advertising partners (e.g., LinkedIn, Google, Meta)

Date: 08.12.2025

Naturally, we always handle your personal data responsibly. Any personal data we receive from you is processed in accordance with applicable data protection legislation. For detailed information please see our privacy policy.

Consent to the use of data for promotional purposes

I hereby consent to Vogel Communications Group GmbH & Co. KG, Max-Planck-Str. 7-9, 97082 Würzburg including any affiliated companies according to §§ 15 et seq. AktG (hereafter: Vogel Communications Group) using my e-mail address to send editorial newsletters. A list of all affiliated companies can be found here

Newsletter content may include all products and services of any companies mentioned above, including for example specialist journals and books, events and fairs as well as event-related products and services, print and digital media offers and services such as additional (editorial) newsletters, raffles, lead campaigns, market research both online and offline, specialist webportals and e-learning offers. In case my personal telephone number has also been collected, it may be used for offers of aforementioned products, for services of the companies mentioned above, and market research purposes.

Additionally, my consent also includes the processing of my email address and telephone number for data matching for marketing purposes with select advertising partners such as LinkedIn, Google, and Meta. For this, Vogel Communications Group may transmit said data in hashed form to the advertising partners who then use said data to determine whether I am also a member of the mentioned advertising partner portals. Vogel Communications Group uses this feature for the purposes of re-targeting (up-selling, cross-selling, and customer loyalty), generating so-called look-alike audiences for acquisition of new customers, and as basis for exclusion for on-going advertising campaigns. Further information can be found in section “data matching for marketing purposes”.

In case I access protected data on Internet portals of Vogel Communications Group including any affiliated companies according to §§ 15 et seq. AktG, I need to provide further data in order to register for the access to such content. In return for this free access to editorial content, my data may be used in accordance with this consent for the purposes stated here. This does not apply to data matching for marketing purposes.

Right of revocation

I understand that I can revoke my consent at will. My revocation does not change the lawfulness of data processing that was conducted based on my consent leading up to my revocation. One option to declare my revocation is to use the contact form found at https://contact.vogel.de. In case I no longer wish to receive certain newsletters, I have subscribed to, I can also click on the unsubscribe link included at the end of a newsletter. Further information regarding my right of revocation and the implementation of it as well as the consequences of my revocation can be found in the data protection declaration, section editorial newsletter.

Xiaomi: Improving Driver Education

Lei Jun, founder of the Xiaomi Group, advocated for better education for drivers. Currently, 60 percent of all vehicles in China are equipped with Level 2 assistance systems, according to Lei. However, many drivers still have no idea where the limits of this technology lie, the company founder argued. He called for improved training in the driving schools across the country. At the same time, drivers should be penalized if they fail to fulfill their oversight duty while driving.

Regarding the second key topic of this year related to automobiles, robotics, the CEOs also had specific proposals. He Xiaopeng spoke about the many dancing humanoids that have garnered significant attention in China for some time. Unfortunately, they are still in the phase of "strong motion control, weak brain," criticized the CEO. The bipedal robots can perform flips on stage but would "freeze" immediately in car factories upon encountering an unfamiliar scenario. He proposed direct incentives for research and development, with clearly defined KPIs, to significantly enhance the safety and utility of humanoid robots in automotive production within the next two years.

Future Cars as Embodied AI

This time, there were around 30 different proposals from the practice of automotive manufacturing, some of which, according to experience, will be picked up by politicians and officials. The senior officials in the Chinese Ministry of Industry and Information Technology (MIIT) and the National Development and Reform Commission (NDRC) have made it a habit not only to invite automotive managers to Beijing once a year but also to listen to them carefully.

The common denominator of all proposals this year was a very clear focus on the convergence of the automotive industry with areas such as the low-altitude economy, satellite-guided navigation, as well as robotics and AI. This aligns with the draft for the new five-year plan. Overall, at this year's NPC meeting in Beijing, there is less discussion about cars as means of transport and more about their role as a first test case for embodied AI in a mass market.