Auto China 2026 in Beijing

Hosted in Beijing Auto China 2026 with a theme of “Leading the Era - Future of Intelligence”, took place during 24 April - 3 May 2026. It’s world’s largest auto show operated in a dual-venue layout, spanning 380,000 m² with 1,451 vehicles in display including 181 global premieres  and 71 concept cars, and with 2,000+ exhibitors from 21 countries/regions - Over 80% focused on new energy and intelligent connected vehicles (NEVs & ICVs).It’s worth mentioning BYD and Chery took the complete E3 (~4200 m²) and E1 (~4000 m²) halls respectively where Huawei under the theme of Harmony Intelligent Mobility had a highly impressive multi-hall presence (4400 m²) showcasing its full-stack automotive solutions and partners. 1+ million visitors (incl. 65K+ overseas audience visits) attended the event. 

As the theme indicated the era of the "AI agent" has apparently arrived in China as AI is everywhere and deeply integrated into every aspect of a vehicle where cars are redefined as “physical AI on wheels.” 

Auto China 2026 demonstrated China’s leadership in shaping the future of intelligent mobility, marked by a clear shift from vehicle-centric competition to integrated ecosystem rivalry. Three pivotal trends converging upon a shared technological foundation, are seen & highlighted below

1). NEV Dominance & Tech Democratization (Equal Access to Intelligent Driving): 80+% of exhibits were NEVs and ICVs. Technologies as L2+ ADAS, 800V ultra-fast charging, and AI-powered smart cockpits upon modern E/E architectures are now standard in mid-range models, democratizing premium features In China customer experience has become a critical factor to every OEM. 

2). Embodied Intelligence as an Extension of Mobility: Humanoid robots were showcased not as standalone concepts, but as integral parts of the automotive eco-system- Synergies with L4 AVs, performing tasks like valet parking, charging, and parcel delivery, effectively becoming the “physical interface” of intelligent mobility.

3). Flying Cars for seamless “Ground-Air” mobility: represents the next frontier of the smart mobility eco-system, which is key component in the heated Low-Attitude Economy in China 

Local auto-makers are vigorously pursuing self-reliance and control in intelligent driving chips, in-vehicle operating systems and intelligent chassis meanwhile foreign companies are accelerating their EV model rollouts, forging deeper partnerships with local tech firms (Momenta, Horizon Robotics, Huawei) for AI and ADAS capabilities - "In China, For China, For the World". 

One notable example for the trends is XPeng. It showcased its integrated intelligent mobility eco-system which seamlessly integrates new energy and intelligent connected vehicles with future technologies and applications such as Robotaxi (GX Robotaxi), flying car (XPeng Land Carrier) and humanoid robot (XPeng IRON) for synergy and business potentials – A full-stack self-development and deployment is the very core. 

• With GX Robotaxi (4 Turing AI chips of 3000 TOPs developed in-house) rolling into mass production it marked XPeng as the first OEM in China to achieve Mass Production of Fully Self-Developed L4 AVs

Geely, Chery, GAC, Changan have been also implementing the same strategy

There were quite a few L4 AVs (RoboTaxi, RoboTruck, RoboVan) incl. Concept vehicles from WeRide, Pony.ai, Baidu Apollo, DeepRoute.ai, KargoBot, NEOLIX, etc. were displayed - Meanwhile L3 vehicles as CS95 SUV from Changan and Arcfox Alpha S from BAIC (among others) were at the show, which made a significant step towards the commercialization of conditional automation – They were the first Chinese automakers to receive L3 approval in late 2025.

Takeway: Chinese brands lead tech, scale and eco-systems, while foreign firms pivot to deep localization and China-as-global-hub strategies - AI and SDVs are the core industry drivers.

Sounds interesting to you ? If Yes be prepared for the coming grand 2027 Shanghai Auto Show likely in mid-to-late April 2027 (TBC). 

Auto China 2026 demonstrated China’s leadership in shaping the future of intelligent mobility, marked by a clear shift from vehicle-centric competition to integrated ecosystem rivalry. Three pivotal trends converging upon a shared technological foundation, are seen & highlighted below

1). NEV Dominance & Tech Democratization (Equal Access to Intelligent Driving): 80+% of exhibits were NEVs and ICVs. Technologies as L2+ ADAS, 800V ultra-fast charging, and AI-powered smart cockpits upon modern E/E architectures are now standard in mid-range models, democratizing premium features In China customer experience has become a critical factor to every OEM. 

2). Embodied Intelligence as an Extension of Mobility: Humanoid robots were showcased not as standalone concepts, but as integral parts of the automotive eco-system- Synergies with L4 AVs, performing tasks like valet parking, charging, and parcel delivery, effectively becoming the “physical interface” of intelligent mobility.

3). Flying Cars for seamless “Ground-Air” mobility: represents the next frontier of the smart mobility eco-system, which is key component in the heated Low-Attitude Economy in China 

Local auto-makers are vigorously pursuing self-reliance and control in intelligent driving chips, in-vehicle operating systems and intelligent chassis meanwhile foreign companies are accelerating their EV model rollouts, forging deeper partnerships with local tech firms (Momenta, Horizon Robotics, Huawei) for AI and ADAS capabilities - "In China, For China, For the World". 

One notable example for the trends is XPeng. It showcased its integrated intelligent mobility eco-system which seamlessly integrates new energy and intelligent connected vehicles with future technologies and applications such as Robotaxi (GX Robotaxi), flying car (XPeng Land Carrier) and humanoid robot (XPeng IRON) for synergy and business potentials – A full-stack self-development and deployment is the very core. 

• With GX Robotaxi (4 Turing AI chips of 3000 TOPs developed in-house) rolling into mass production it marked XPeng as the first OEM in China to achieve Mass Production of Fully Self-Developed L4 AVs

Geely, Chery, GAC, Changan have been also implementing the same strategy.

There were quite a few L4 AVs (RoboTaxi, RoboTruck, RoboVan) incl. Concept vehicles from WeRide, Pony.ai, Baidu Apollo, DeepRoute.ai, KargoBot, NEOLIX, etc. were displayed - Meanwhile L3 vehicles as CS95 SUV from Changan and Arcfox Alpha S from BAIC (among others) were at the show, which made a significant step towards the commercialization of conditional automation – They were the first Chinese automakers to receive L3 approval in late 2025.

Takeway: Chinese brands lead tech, scale and eco-systems, while foreign firms pivot to deep localization and China-as-global-hub strategies - AI and SDVs are the core industry drivers.

Sounds interesting to you ? If Yes be prepared for the coming grand 2027 Shanghai Auto Show likely in mid-to-late April 2027 (TBC).