2026 China Automotive Forum, Main Forum Wang Hui Speech Transcript

(Warm reminder: The following transcript has not been reviewed by the speaker for publication. It is for media reference only and should not be disseminated. If quoting the transcript, please indicate the occasion as "2026 China Automotive Forum".)

Wang Hui: Anchoring Development Direction with Four Transformations, Competing for Globalization through Industrial Synergy

From July 21-23, 2026, the 2026 China Automotive Forum was held in Jiading, Shanghai. This forum was organized by the China Automotive Industry Association. With the theme "New Starting Point, New Opportunities, New Journey — Drawing a New Blueprint for High-Quality Development of the Automotive Industry", it consisted of 16 sessions and several supporting events, including "1 closed-door summit, 1 main forum, 1 technology leader summit, 13 thematic forums, N industry launches". Each session revolved around hot topics in the automotive industry to explore directions and lead the future. Among them, at the "Main Forum" held on the morning of July 22, Wang Hui, Executive Vice President of Chongqing Changan Automobile Co., Ltd., and Chairman of Avatr Technology (Chongqing) Co., Ltd., delivered a speech titled "Anchoring Development Direction with Four Transformations, Competing for Globalization through Industrial Synergy". The following is the on-site speech transcript:

Distinguished leaders, colleagues, and media friends, good morning. It is a pleasure to meet everyone at the 2026 China Automotive Forum. This year marks the beginning of the 15th Five-Year Plan. China's automotive industry stands at a new historical starting point, in a critical transition period from scale expansion to high-quality development. How to open the new period well, take the first step well, and achieve a leapfrog transformation from large to strong in the new five-year plan is the era's required question in front of the entire industry. Today, I would like to share some observations and thoughts on the global automotive industry with you, focusing on two core keywords: "Situation" and "Path".

First, let's look at the future trend. I believe most brands in China's automotive industry are currently at a crossroads of a brutal reshuffle. We must clearly realize that China's automotive industry has entered the deep waters of survival of the fittest. Industry competition is shifting from price comparison to value competition centered on user experience. The financial impact and operational pressure brought by this change are unprecedented, forcing all participants to re-examine their leadership models, R&D systems, and revenue strategies. This is no longer conventional product iteration and upgrade, but an in-depth competition covering the entire system capability.

Secondly, from the industry characteristics perspective, I believe there are four major reshapes.

The first reshape is the reshaping of the market landscape. Development models have shifted from a single engine to dual polarization. Domestic demand pressure and breakthrough in overseas expansion have become the new normal for industry development. In the first half of the year, domestic automotive production and sales declined year-on-year, domestic demand growth was weak, and the market entered a white-hot stage of stock game. At the same time, automotive exports achieved growth exceeding expectations, becoming the core driver supporting stable industry development. A set of data can be referenced: In the first half of this year, the total domestic automotive wholesale volume decreased by 21% year-on-year, while automotive exports increased significantly by 65% year-on-year, with the growth rate of new energy vehicle exports reaching 122%. The domestic market is an elimination race where stagnation leads to retreat, while the overseas market is a rally race of incremental expansion. China's automotive globalization journey has been fully launched. I just returned from abroad last week, and my itinerary for the next three months is scheduled for 20 overseas countries. I also want to share frontline experiences with you. Accompanied by Chinese brands going global collectively, the work pressure for external market cultivation has greatly decreased. All overseas markets have very high acceptance and recognition for Chinese brands. As we enter every country overseas, we can fully feel this confidence. For Chinese automotive brands, this is indeed a very precious opportunity.

The second reshape is the reshaping of technical routes. Industry development has moved from the first half of electrification to the second half of intelligence. The core track of industry competition is switching rapidly. Software-defined vehicles are accelerating towards AI-defined vehicles. Vehicles are no longer simple transportation tools, but super intelligent terminals with deep integration of driving cockpits, chassis, power, and other intelligent systems. At the same time, embodied intelligence represented by robots has gradually become a new direction for the industry. 2026 is the key window for various technologies to move from conceptual expectations to scale implementation. If the first half of the industry competition is about battery capacity, the second half is about computing power. Whoever can establish a generational advantage in the field of artificial intelligence and intelligent driving will be able to grasp the definition right of the next generation of mobile mobility.

Regarding this point, I share frontline experiences. Now when visiting overseas, overseas partners no longer focus on our next generation of vehicle planning, but on how we layout our next generation of artificial intelligence technology. This is a very prominent change this year. In previous years, overseas partners focused more on new generation product planning, but now the focus has shifted to automakers' artificial intelligence layout.

The third reshape is the reshaping of supply chain value. Development focus has shifted from vehicle supremacy to ecosystem synergy. The industry's value focus and power center are undergoing transfer. The linear supply chain relationship between traditional OEMs and suppliers has been thoroughly broken. In the fields of batteries and intelligent driving, domestic supply chain enterprises are upgrading from traditional parts suppliers to system-level solution providers. Local supply chain enterprises are beginning to lead the underlying technology architecture of global intelligent vehicles. Cross-border integration has become the norm for the industry. Future industry competition will no longer be confrontation between single enterprises, but comparison between different ecosystem systems.

The fourth reshape is the reshaping of competition mode. That is, moving from product globalization to industrial globalization. Currently, China's automotive globalization has entered the deep waters, shifting from simple complete vehicle product exports to a new stage of industrial globalization featuring local brands paired with local supply chains. Overseas capacity layout has also upgraded from early spot testing to the construction of regional manufacturing centers.

2026 to 2027 will be a critical period for Chinese automakers' overseas factories to concentrate on production and capacity ramp-up. At the same time, Chinese automakers, relying on leading energy technology and intelligent technology, will accelerate brand image upgrade. Relying on differentiated technical advantages, they will establish the brand perception of high-tech Chinese vehicles in high-end mature markets such as Europe, promoting the leap of China's automotive exports from scale leadership to quality leadership.

In the era of great change, I personally believe that only by firmly promoting the transformation of intelligence, green, fusion, and globalization can we turn challenges into opportunities in this round of industry change. With this opportunity, I want to share Changan Automobile's practice. Under the guidance of China's Changan Automobile "1445" Global Strategy, Changan Automobile closely adheres to the high-quality development route, accelerates the transformation of intelligence, green, fusion, and globalization, and steadily moves towards a world-class automotive brand.

First is to continuously promote the Beidou Tianshu Plan to accelerate the transformation to intelligence. We always take intelligence as the core engine of transformation and upgrading. Since the intelligence team was established in 2009, the team size has grown to over 7,500. We own the industry's only National Key Laboratory of Intelligent Vehicle Safety Technology. We have built over 200 laboratories, including the industry-leading Changan Automobile Tianshu Intelligent Test Center, which can support global collaboration and all-weather uninterrupted testing. Virtual simulation test scenarios exceed 400,000. The software test drive site can simulate a mileage of 3.3 million kilometers daily. Changan's self-developed one-stage end-to-end driving assistance system — Changan Tianshu Pilot, revolves around user travel physical, psychological, and emotional three core needs, builds three safety defense lines, and achieves a full-dimension experience upgrade from bottom-line protection, stress relief and peace of mind to tacit companionship. In the second half of the year, the Tianshu Pilot Value Assistance System will be mounted on Changan Qiyuan Q06 for mass production and listing.

Second is to deeply implement the Shangri-La Plan to accelerate the transformation to new energy. At the brand level, we have built the Avatr, Deep Blue, and Changan Qiyuan three major global digital new energy brand matrix. The three brands have also promoted overseas layout in different overseas countries respectively.

At the technical level, relying on Changan's six-country, ten-location global R&D layout, we built the Golden Bell Battery, achieving long life, high safety, ultra-high efficiency, and fast recharging through innovation. We have completed the technology verification of 20 Ah-level sulfide and polymer composite solid-state batteries, with single-cell energy density reaching 400Wh/kg. This July, the thermal battery project won the Second Class Prize of National Science and Technology Progress Award again after 2024.

In the field of product innovation, we have successively launched models such as Avatr 06, Deep Blue S05, and Qiyuan Q05, gaining widespread user recognition. In the third quarter, heavyweights such as the Smart and Beautiful 5-Seater Luxury SUV Avatr 07L, and the New Wave Dynamic SUV Qiyuan Q06, which have been heavily created, will be listed. Welcome to continue to pay attention.

In the next five years, we will further focus on the global single product strategy to create one global blockbuster model with annual sales of 500,000 level, and five global blockbuster models with annual sales of 300,000 level. Here I want to share, based on the current industry development trend, all our new product development is based on a global perspective. If global consideration is missing, product development work will basically be suspended directly.

The third key strategy is to fully implement the "Hainabai Chuan" Plan to accelerate the transformation to globalization. We released the "Hainabai Chuan" Strategy 1.0 version in April 2023. Relying on the 1.0 plan, business expansion covered more than 70 countries. This April, we officially released the Overseas Strategy 2.0 to drive the upgrade of globalization development. Development models have upgraded from product trade dominated to a comprehensive business model that coordinated promotion of manufacturing, trade, investment, service, and ESG construction. To this end, we carried out comprehensive upgrades around seven major directions.

First is technology dimension upgrade. In the energy saving field, we created the Blue Whale Super Engine Hybrid System, breaking the Japanese brand technical route dominated by fuel, and creating a new hybrid model with equal emphasis on fuel and electricity, wisdom integration. In the chassis field, we have completed the development of 63 integrated functions including tire blowout stable driving, active crosswind stability system, etc., among which 8 are industry premieres, 12 are industry leading. In the intelligence field, we continue to iterate the one-stage end-to-end technology architecture, integrating VLA large model and World Model, so that vehicles can better identify road conditions and adapt to drivers' driving habits.

Second is product dimension upgrade. Promoting the development model to upgrade from global synchronous development to global native development superimposed with regional customization. Persist in global platform generalization, regional product differentiation, and firmly create global single products.

Third is brand dimension upgrade. We take Blue Whale Super Engine Power, Tianshu Intelligence as the technical core. Taking global single products such as Deep Blue S05, Qiyuan Q05, and Changan CS55 as carriers, relying on DNA Design 5.0 design language to convey brand value, letting global users truly feel tech care, making every travel safer, smarter, and greener.

Fourth is cooperation model dimension upgrade. In the next three years, we advocate for global partners to jump out of simple parts supply and marketing collaboration, and deepen technical synergy, product co-creation, brand mutual aid, and capacity sharing, to build a user-first, partner-priority, long-term stable global ecosystem.

Fifth is investment dimension upgrade. In the next three years, resources will fully focus on product R&D, brand upgrade, service upgrade, and ecosystem construction in four directions, persisting in putting resources into the areas most needed by users.

Sixth is service dimension upgrade. We are accelerating the construction of a global efficient service network and agile spare parts system. In the core areas of the world, we layout spare parts centers, service centers, and call centers, realizing all-time response. With efficient support, achieving zero distance service. Sharing the reason among them, I visited Thailand and multiple Southeast Asian countries last week, and found that the overseas market's demand for automotive service is higher than domestic. Overseas users naturally believe that the overseas Chinese new energy brands are positioned as high-end, so supporting service standards should be higher. Many domestic general service standards are not applicable when placed in the overseas market, which also requires us to complete the service system dimension upgrade as soon as possible.

Seventh is team dimension upgrade. In the next three years, our overseas employee scale will break through 4,600 people, with localization employee percentage exceeding 70%, driving the total employment scale of upstream and downstream supply chains to break through 15,000 people.

Relying on the seven major directions for comprehensive dimension upgrade measures, we are fully sprinting towards the 2030 overseas sales doubling goal, striving to reach 1.5 million to 1.8 million units. After this round of overseas market field visits and internal seminars, we judge that by 2030, the overseas market still harbors greater development opportunities.

Facing 2030, Changan Automobile will firmly promote integration development. On one hand integrating high-quality industry resources, on the other hand actively integrating into the industry big ecosystem.

To talk about some personal feelings, I have been working at Changan for over twenty years, witnessing Changan from micro vehicle manufacturing, walking into independent passenger car track, and then completing electrification and new energy transformation. This round of overseas market expansion made me, as an automotive practitioner, feel for the first time, that Chinese automotive brands have the opportunity to stand on the peak of the world. This is a historic major opportunity. Whether it is overseas brand premium capability, product supply capability, or the whole supply chain system, relying on the national new energy development strategy, this might be a rare era opportunity for automotive people in our life. Facing the future, Changan Automobile is willing to join hands with industry colleagues to run the acceleration of China's automobiles on the high-quality development track, and jointly contribute Changan's strength to the prosperity and progress of the automotive industry. Tech Changan, Smart Partner. Thank you all.

(Note: This article is organized based on the on-site transcript and has not been reviewed by the speaker)