The Camel Bells Fade, Electric Motors Roar: A Chinese Fleet Retraces the Silk Road, But the Destination Is Not Shenzhen

Shenzhen is not the end, but another starting point

August 14, Shenzhen. A fleet composed of new energy vehicles paused here temporarily. But everyone was clear, this was not the end. 33 days ago, they set off from Xi'an, heading south all the way, passing through Bozhou, Jingdezhen, Hangzhou, Wuyishan—these place names, connected together, just happened to string together the four most dazzling things on the ancient Silk Road a thousand years ago: aromatic herbs, porcelain, silk, tea. A thousand years ago, camel caravans carried these "Eastern Symbols" westward, bringing China to the world.

Thousands of years later, camel bells became the low hum of electric drive, caravans became new energy fleets, traveling the same major artery connecting east and west, but what was loaded in the vehicles and the meaning behind it had completely changed protagonists. Cultural visits and technical tests were never idle all the way!

On this journey, it is not just a cultural visit

Flash charging technology and intelligent assisted driving systems were online throughout. After long-distance inter-city travel, energy replenishment speed and driving control experience both underwent solid testing. The fleet also produced a series of contents such as 'A Thousand-Year Meeting at Last' and 'Traveling China with Flash Charging', recording true stories about intangible cultural heritage inheritance, urban changes, and domestic brands going global.

Cultural visits and technical experiences intertwined all the way, forming a strange era resonance between the thousand-year-old Silk Road and China's new energy industry today. Speaking of technology, BYD's second-generation Blade Battery and Flash Charging technology released this March has pushed charging speed to a brand new height—charging from 10% to 70% takes only 5 minutes, charging to 97% takes only 9 minutes. Performance in low-temperature environments is equally amazing, charging from 20% to 97% at minus 30 degrees takes only 3 minutes more than normal temperature. Vehicles equipped with this technology broke the 1000-kilometer range limit. The distance that camel caravans took a month to cover back then, today's electric vehicles can run the full route with one charge.

Speeds changed, but the direction connecting the world remains unchanged

Numbers speak: A million vehicles is just the beginning. Shenzhen is the end of the domestic segment, but more importantly, it is the starting point of the overseas journey. Next, the fleet will connect with the Maritime Silk Road from here and continue towards Southeast Asia and the Middle East. From the Land Silk Road to the Maritime Silk Road, from Xi'an to Shenzhen and then overseas, riding on mountains and seas on a green voyage, the vision of this journey has already extended from domestic to global.

Speaking of the globe, a set of data is worth looking at carefully. In July 2026, BYD's overseas sales reached 180,000 vehicles, a year-on-year increase of 124.3%, resetting historic records again. In the first seven months of this year, cumulative overseas sales have reached 969,000 vehicles, just one final step away from the one million vehicle milestone. As of now, BYD's new energy vehicles have covered 121 countries and regions globally. The proportion of overseas sales to total sales has already exceeded 43%—meaning that for every two cars sold, one heads to the overseas market.

Not just selling cars, it is the entire supply chain going global

What is more worth noticing is that this 'Going Global' is no longer simply transporting cars for sale abroad. Localization production, technology export, and industrial synergy are advancing synchronously. The Camaçari factory in Brazil started production in July 2025 with a first-phase annual capacity of 150,000 vehicles, expanding to 300,000 by the end of 2026; the Szeged factory in Hungary invested about $4.5 billion, with a planned annual capacity of 300,000 vehicles, launching mass production in Q4 2026; the Thailand factory has an annual production of 150,000 vehicles, radiating to the entire ASEAN market.

From selling products to building an ecosystem, from "Made in China" to "Global Co-construction", the entire supply chain of China's new energy industry is heading towards the world. The camel bells fade, the direction remains unchanged. A thousand years ago, silk, porcelain, and tea made the world recognize the East.