In the past two years, the choice of intelligent assisted driving solutions by automotive companies has triggered a massive discussion in the industry regarding the "Soul Theory"—but this has not stopped most automotive companies from seizing market opportunities. They continue to choose mainstream suppliers' intelligent driving systems and smart cockpits to improve their products' competitiveness. Obviously, establishing an intelligent driving system requires evolution from "consciousness" to "pragmatism," and it cannot be achieved overnight, as this involves R&D investments in the range of tens of billions. Now, a new Central SOE has finally taken a substantive step, and that is Changan Automobile.

On September 4th at the 6th Changan Tech Ecosystem Conference, the release of Changan Tianshu Leading technology and the pre-sale launch of Changan Qiyuan Q06 were officially held, which can be considered a closed-loop response to the "Soul Theory" of that year. In the subsequent media communication session, Changan Automobile Executive Vice President Yang Dayong directly pointed out the core of Changan's intelligent driving self-research: "From the beginning of creating the Changan brand and Qiyuan brand until now, what we were waiting for was Tianshu Leading. Changan Qiyuan models will be equipped with, and only equipped with, Changan's self-developed Tianshu Leading intelligent driving assistance system in the future. The core reason comes down to two words: Brand."

Objectively speaking, in this era where almost every car company talks about "end-to-end," there are not many companies that have truly implemented mass production with a fully self-developed one-piece end-to-end approach. However, Changan is an exception among them. With cumulative sales breaking through 30 million units, persisting in intelligent R&D for over a decade, and investing over 60 billion into the intelligent sector, Changan's firmly chosen path of full-stack self-research still holds relatively high value today.

Of course, if this path is simply labeled as "computing power competition" and "scenario coverage," it is actually looking at Changan's decision too simply. Firmly choosing such a capital-intensive route and releasing a product with superior intelligent driving levels without setting a high threshold, the strategic significance behind Changan's intelligent driving self-research is worth deep discussion.

Changan Intelligent Driving Self-Research Understands the "Coase Boundary"

Even though intelligent driving is a topic that mainstream car companies must face, the matter of "whether to self-research" is understood differently by everyone. Facing fierce market competition, thinking about your own "Coase Boundary" in advance is perhaps the more reasonable answer to this question. The Coase Theory holds that when market transaction costs are higher than internal organization costs, enterprises choose to "do it themselves" rather than "buy from others." In other words, how much an enterprise should do depends on the cost comparison between building in-house and outsourcing.

Theoretically, the current Chinese intelligent driving market has a fairly mature supplier ecosystem. Any of Huawei, Momenta, or Horizon could allow Changan to take a shortcut in intelligent driving; Changan has the condition for "plug and play" in this field. Transferring R&D costs to the supply chain and focusing on vehicle manufacturing and brand marketing is also a choice for many car companies.

Surprisingly, Changan did not do this. So what was its choice? Since establishing an intelligent R&D team in 2009, Changan has persisted on the self-research route, building an intelligent R&D team of over 7,500 people and constructing the only National Key Laboratory in China focusing on intelligent vehicle safety technology. It can be seen that Changan's investment in this area is huge.

"Why must we insist on self-research? Without self-research capability, it is difficult for the brand to clearly explain to consumers: Why should users choose us? What differentiated experience can we provide? Consumers are not just buying a car, but an affirmation of the brand, which is also an important part of our brand's new quality productive forces." Yang Dayong stated.

Then, why take the detour instead of the shortcut? In our exclusive interview, Changan Automobile Vice President He Gang provided an explanation. He mainly mentioned four points: First, only self-research allows for deep understanding of user needs and polishing products with real data; Second, only self-research possesses complete system analysis capabilities. When vehicle anomalies occur, problems can be located at the whole vehicle level. If only doing the intelligent driving single module, the whole picture of the vehicle cannot be seen; Third, only self-research can achieve rapid iterative optimization. After problems are found, data can be quickly collected, models trained, and simulations verified; Fourth, only self-research can back up safety and responsibility. As an OEM, it must be responsible for the final result of the whole vehicle.

From these perspectives, Changan's decision logic is very clear. When intelligent driving technology becomes a "core differentiated element" of automotive products, market transaction costs will exceed internal organization costs. Outsourcing intelligent driving solutions may look like a "shortcut" on the surface, but hidden costs are very high. Apart from negotiation costs, coordination costs, and iteration costs, the core thing belongs to others, making it difficult to form a true technical barrier. For a car company of Changan's scale, "borrowing the path" is not a long-term plan.

Besides the underlying considerations at the strategic level, the long-term value of the self-research route is more reflected in the core advantages of the technical architecture. Changan Automobile Chief Intelligent Driving Technology Officer Tao Ji broke down Tianshu Leading's "one-piece end-to-end" into three layers: First is the World Model. Driving is a dynamic game task; the vehicle needs to truly "read" the intentions of other traffic participants and play games with them; Second is the Body Model, incorporating vehicle dynamics and chassis capabilities into the large model to understand the "boundaries of muscle capability"; Third is the Multimodal Large Model, allowing the system to understand natural language instructions like "follow that grey sedan in front" and accurately map them to specific vehicles in 3D physical space. The three eventually share a backbone of a basic large model in the cloud. This is also the most essential difference between Tianshu Leading and "outsourced solutions."

Changan chose to self-develop Tianshu Leading. This system forms a deep coupled system-level synergy with the SDA Tianshu Central Ring Network Architecture, Tianshu Chassis, and Tianshu Cockpit 2.0. This synergy cannot be achieved by any outsourced solution. Yang Dayong stated at the communication meeting: "According to Changan's planning, whether it is Changan Automobile or Changan Qiyuan Brand, Changan brand models will be equipped with, and only equipped with, Changan's self-developed Tianshu Leading intelligent driving assistance system. So far, we have no intention to introduce other suppliers to provide intelligent driving assistance overall solutions for the Changan Brand. The core reason comes down to two words: Brand." Changan wants to clarify "why choose us" to consumers through this way and further shape brand recognition. From a long-term perspective, this is a very visionary move to enhance brand competitiveness.

Changan's ambition goes beyond self-research and self-use. He Gang revealed: "When Tianshu Leading was originally planned, it was to build a global intelligent platform, hoping to provide it to all car factories and industries related to intelligent robots, such as robots, flying cars, etc. Currently, besides our product brands, external car factories are also communicating with us. Some strategic agreements will be released recently, and next year, some models in vehicles outside the Changan family will be equipped." This means Changan's role positioning in the intelligent driving field is extending from "Client" to "Solution Provider."

Behind Qiyuan Q06 Pricing is a Downward Marginal Cost Curve

At the 6th Changan Tech Ecosystem Conference, Qiyuan Q06 started pre-sales. The pre-sale price starting from 147,900 RMB was quite unexpected, especially since this is a vehicle fully equipped with LiDAR and carrying the Tianshu Leading intelligent driving system. If adding the 800V Silicon Carbide High Voltage Platform, 6C Fast Charging, front double wishbone rear multi-link full aluminum suspension, etc., it is clearly a pricing exceeding industry norms.

Now the industry is heavily competitive, and breaking existing price anchors while improving value experience is not easy. Now Changan has done this with this new car. Why? After all, its marginal cost curve is moving downward. The cost structure of outsourced solutions is "linear," making the upfront investment look acceptable. However, in reality, for every car sold, the car company needs to pay a fixed licensing fee or hardware premium to Tier 1.

To put it bluntly, no matter how much car companies want to reduce costs, there is a supplier's profit floor controlling it. Self-research solutions are different. The cost structure of self-research solutions is "steep then flat," meaning huge upfront investment, but the marginal cost keeps decreasing. For example, Changan's upfront R&D investment is a fixed cost. Once mass production is completed, the "intelligent driving marginal cost" for every additional car is only chip, sensor, and other hardware material costs.

Beyond self-research, Changan has further confidence in cost reduction. Hesai's official website mentioned that it has obtained exclusive mass production projects for multiple Changan brands, with planned orders exceeding 1.5 million units. This scale of centralized procurement means Changan has more bargaining space on the hardware side. Therefore, behind Yang Dayong saying "this car must make money," is a problem calculated in advance. On one hand, self-research amortizes fixed costs; on the other hand, centralized procurement suppresses hardware costs. Under dual-wheel drive, Changan dares to break norms with Qiyuan Q06 and re-calibrate the value of this level of vehicle. Qiyuan Brand's actual sales also prove the correctness of Changan's strategy in recent years.

"Qiyuan's global sales broke 45,000 in August. After Q06 is out, I believe the number will increase further. Moreover, this number was achieved under the difficult situation of guaranteeing Q05 supply now, with tens of thousands of Q05 orders still not delivered. Plus Q06, I personally think Qiyuan's average monthly sales might have a chance to reach around 60,000 units, and the total sales this year should be around 400,000 units." For Changan Qiyuan's current achievements and next goals, Yang Dayong believes there is more confidence and optimism with the support of Tianshu Leading.

In the interview, Changan Qiyuan General Manager Li Rui revealed that Q06 pre-sales reached 11,000 units in two hours last night. Among the two major configuration gradients, one is Tianshu Leading Pro, the other is Tianshu Leading Ultra. The percentage of customers choosing Tianshu Leading Ultra reached 53%. Most customers chose the 700 km range, and they have a higher focus on intelligent driving assistance. Especially Changan Automobile's inaugural dual-motor rear-drive data, the users who chose it account for about 33%. This means the willingness of initial users to pay for intelligent driving is not low, and it also shows that although car companies have huge investment in self-research, the outbreak of market demand will allow car companies to quickly welcome the return period.

Gaining User Trust, Central SOE Identity is an "Open Card"

To take root in the intelligent driving track, "safety" is the story that must be told well. However, various intelligent driving safety accidents that occurred in the industry in the past did not leave people with a good impression. The trust deficit consumers have in intelligent driving is a problem every car company must face. Changan's advantage lies in its ability to tell the story well and its strength to implement the story. Of course, here is an "open card," which is the Central SOE identity.

In economics, there is a concept called "Credible Commitment." When one party can make an irrevocable commitment, transaction costs can be reduced, and trust efficiency improved. As a Central SOE, Changan has a very high cost to breach commitments. This "dare not mess around" constraint actually makes it easier for people to generate trust. At the launch event, Changan repeatedly emphasized "Assisted Driving is not Autonomous Driving" and "No Exaggeration, No Misleading." Its statement on intelligent driving safety issues carries the characteristics of "Credible Commitment."

This "dare not mess around" constraint is also reflected very specifically in Changan's R&D system. He Gang revealed at the communication meeting that Changan has officially included intelligent driving "generalization testing" into the development test system. 500 engineers cover 45 cities nationwide for road tests. After each version iteration, engineers receive differentiated map tasks for on-site testing. The backend statistics takeover times and other key data in real-time. This mechanism ensures Tianshu Leading will not only stay at "works well in Chongqing," but truly possesses "can work nationwide" generalization capabilities.

In addition, there are a few key points that can indirectly reflect the trustworthiness of Changan's intelligent driving. Changan is the first car company in China to obtain official formal license plates for Level 3 autonomous driving and is also one of the first Central SOEs to obtain Level 4 Robotaxi test licenses. Behind these two licenses are the strict audits of ministries such as the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology and the Ministry of Public Security, carrying the meaning of "Official Certification" in itself. Changan also deeply participated in the formulation of ADS GTR International Regulations—the world's first unified technical regulations for autonomous driving—and led the formulation of multiple national standards such as "Automated Driving Classification of Automobiles." Currently, Changan has deeply participated in formulating over 270 international, national, and industry standards, including over 60 in the intelligent field. It can be seen that Changan's strength in intelligent driving is very hardcore.

Besides, the Qiyuan Brand has not only focused on the domestic market but repeatedly emphasized "Domestic and Overseas Global One Game." In August 2026, Changan Automobile's overseas deliveries reached 92,400 units, up 78.6% year-on-year, achieving year-on-year growth for 7 consecutive months; With the completion of the Brazil Factory production and the 20,000th whole vehicle rolling off the line from the Thailand Rayong Factory, Changan's localized production network continues to deepen, and the overseas market is becoming one of its core growth pillars. He Gang's judgment on overseas intelligent driving implementation is that Highway NCA will spread quickly, but Urban is not that easy. After personally visiting multiple countries, he believes that the UAE road conditions are clear, lane lines are neat, and driving behavior is good, which might be the best overseas market for layout Urban NCA. Senior management is not aggressive, cautious and rhythmic attitude, which is very rare in the industry.

Trial of multi-form consumer markets has already become an important idea for Changan Automobile after core technology support, because for a time-honored car company, the "sense of crisis" always exists.

Yang Dayong analyzed: "There are currently about 120+ automotive brands in China, among which there are about 50-60 with certain sales scale that can enter the rising list. Among these 50-60 brands, the truly active ones, which contribute about 80% of China's auto market sales, are about 25, belonging to 10 to 15 OEMs. According to the '80/20 Rule' deduction, by 2030 or a future point in time, the ones that may finally survive are just these 20+ brands. From over 120 reducing to 20+ means the Chinese market will eliminate about 100 brands in the next few years, inevitably followed by extremely fierce even brutal competition." According to his judgment, before 2030, competition in China's auto market will still be in a white-hot stage. Changan Automobile is confident to be among those 20+ brands and can persist in walking for a long time, and this requires enterprises to build unique competitive advantages in brand power, product power, marketing power, and other aspects.

Conclusion

Tianshu Leading launch, redefined the marginal cost curve of intelligent driving with full-stack self-research and scale effect; Qiyuan Q06, with a pre-sale price starting from 147,900 RMB, reshaped the value anchor of intelligent driving models; Plus the Central SOE identity trust endorsement, management's control of industry rhythm, and constructed differentiated brand cognition, Changan is building a differentiated brand cognition system, every step is walked solidly and clearly.

Industry competition will only become more fierce, and Changan's answer sheet about the "Soul Theory" has been written clearly enough. This is not only a business choice for a car company to gain market recognition through technical self-research, but also a strategic layout for a new Central SOE to carry the banner of core technology independence and controllability in the automotive intelligence wave. From self-research and self-use to open empowerment, from the domestic market to the global stage, Changan's strategic layout ultimately points to the core discourse power of China's automotive industry in the global intelligent competition.

August 25, with BYD serving as the full journey travel partner, the "2026 Silk Road Ten-Thousand Mile Run · Enlightenment Road" concluded in Singapore. This expedition lasting 33 days and crossing over 10,000 kilometers has reached a fulfilling conclusion. Departing from Xi'an, traversing key domestic Silk Road towns, crossing seas to visit Thailand and Malaysia, finally landing in Singapore — this was not only a dialogue of Land and Sea Silk Road civilizations, but also a large-scale outdoor technical test based on real data. BYD's Dynasty, Ocean, Denza, Fang Cheng Bao, and YangWang five product matrices, as official designated vehicles, safeguarded the entire journey, supported by Super Charging and Di Tian Zhi Yan Intelligent Driving dual technologies, answering a core question with solid trip data: Can new energy vehicles truly withstand the extreme test of long-distance travel over 10,000 miles?

I. Super Charging Technology: Turning "Charging Anxiety" into "Charging Freedom"

The biggest pain point of long-distance travel has never been range, but energy replenishment efficiency. Any amount of range will eventually run out, just like fuel cars never mention the range issue because refueling is now very convenient. When charging can also achieve charging freedom, range might become negligible, while BYD's Super Charging is slowly realizing this; traditionally, electric cars running on highways queue for charging at service areas, waiting at least half an hour, which is especially overwhelming during holidays. BYD's Super Charging technology has solved this pain point; in normal temperature environments, it can charge from 10% to 70% in 5 minutes, and to 97% in 9 minutes, and even in extremely cold weather, it only takes a few minutes more than normal temperature charging. With this charging speed, do you still consider range? The 33 days of real experience during this Silk Road Ten-Thousand Mile Run is enough to see its Super Charging strength.

II. Super Charging Network: Density is the "Infrastructure" for New Energy Long Distance

Having fast charging technology alone is not enough; without a sufficiently dense charging pile network, everything is empty talk. BYD's "Super Charging China" strategy is accelerating implementation, planning to build 20,000 Super Charging stations across the country by the end of 2026, achieving coverage within 5 km for 90% of urban areas and Super Charging station coverage every 100+ km on average on highways. As of now, station building has approached 10,000 stations, meaning it is moving towards the goal.

When traveling on the Silk Road, the convoy departed from Xi'an going west and south; the regions passed through were not cities with very large new energy vehicle ownership, but along the way one could still rely on Super Charging for energy supplement. In some countries, even without Super Charging, one could achieve high-speed fast charging on other brand charging piles, where fast charging power could reach the maximum output power of the charging station. Isn't this compatibility quite good? For consumers, in the future long-distance travel one doesn't need to worry about energy supplement or queuing for charging, which is the best for consumers.

III. Di Tian Zhi Yan: Turning High-End Intelligent Driving from "Luxury" to "Standard Equipment"

33 days, over 10,000 kilometers of long-distance driving, another invisible test is the driver's fatigue. BYD this year is pushing high-end intelligent driving to the masses, with all series models capable of being equipped with "Di Tian Zhi Yan B Assist Driving LiDAR Version", covering three core scenarios: High-Speed Pilot, City Pilot, and Intelligent Parking. This means from highway cruising to city congestion to parking, all scenarios have intelligent driving systems assisting to share driving pressure.

In the Silk Road long-distance trip, the value of the High-Speed Pilot function is most prominent — during long-term high-speed driving, the system automatically follows cars, automatically changes lanes, automatically maintains lanes, changing drivers from "full-time tense" to "supervising driving", significantly reducing fatigue. More worth noting is BYD's pioneering "Double Safety Net" policy: vehicles across the series equipped with Di Tian Zhi Yan enjoy lifetime intelligent parking safety net, while Di Tian Zhi Yan A/B models City Pilot function provides a 1-year safety net. This is not just BYD's generosity, but recognition of its own strength, and inclusivity towards everyone's concerns.

IV. Five Matrices Collaboration: Technical Combo in Different Scenarios

This safeguard has another easily overlooked technical highlight — the five product matrices set out in collaboration. Dynasty series' mature stability, Ocean series' youthful dynamics, Denza's comfort, Fang Cheng Bao's hardcore off-roading, YangWang's high technology, different brand models showed their strengths on different sections of the Silk Road. These models precisely realized their own advantages, with the five matrices collaborating in combat.

Conclusion

The fulfilling conclusion of the Silk Road Ten-Thousand Mile Run, for BYD, was not a simple brand activity, but a public and transparent technical stress test. Super Charging technology solved the question of "how fast is energy supplement", Super Charging network solved the question of "how convenient is energy supplement", Di Tian Zhi Yan solved the question of "how tired is driving", and the five matrices proved the product capability of full scene coverage. Silk Road Journey, Green Energy Companion, this is not just a slogan, but a technical declaration written by BYD using over 10,000 kilometers of real trip, and it can be said the future travel method is already beginning to take shape.

Author | Zhang Rui

Editor | Zhi Hao

Leapmotor Executives: A Major Technology Release Will Happen in September, Overseas Sales Target for Next Year is 350,000 to 400,000 Units.

Carwest reported on August 24, that just now, Zhejiang Leapmotor Technology Co., Ltd. (hereinafter referred to as Leapmotor) held the 2026 Mid-Year Performance Conference Call.

Leapmotor CFO Li Tengfei, Leapmotor Co-President Wu Qiang, Leapmotor Board Secretary Shen Ke attended the Leapmotor 2026 First Half Performance Conference Call. On the conference call, Li Tengfei mainly answered around 16 related questions, among which there were 4 key questions:

1、New Product Planning: Leapmotor's new model launch quantity in 2027 will be greater than 2026, it is a very major product year.

2、Assisted Driving Progress: The assisted driving products released at the September technology launch event have a huge, leapfrogging improvement compared to Leapmotor's current assisted driving.

3、Overseas Sales: Estimated this year overseas sales can reach 200,000 units, next year overseas sales target is around 350,000 to 400,000 units.

4、Robotics Business: Leapmotor has its own plan, and will officially announce Leapmotor's specific information regarding robots in the near future.

According to the financial report, Leapmotor's first-half 2026 revenue was 38.11 billion yuan, up 57.2% year-over-year compared to 24.25 billion yuan in the first half of 2025, creating a historic high for the same period.

▲Leapmotor 2026 First Half Main Financial Data

In terms of net profit, in the first half of 2026, Leapmotor's net profit was 210 million yuan, while in the first half of 2025 it was 30 million yuan, representing a year-over-year growth of approximately 600%.

In terms of sales volume, in the first half of 2026, Leapmotor's total sales volume was 356,500 units, year-over-year growth of 60.8% compared to the same period in 2025, among which export volume was 96,300 units, year-over-year growth of 372.6%, accounting for 27.0% of Leapmotor's total sales volume in the first half of 2026.

Overall, Leapmotor showed significant year-over-year growth in revenue, net profit, and sales volume in the first half of 2026, delivering a brilliant semi-annual financial report.

Article Benefit: Leapmotor releases 2026 first-half financial report, revenue year-over-year growth 57.2%. The financial report document has been prepared for you by Carwest, Reply [Carwest 0994] to download.

01.

Major Technology Release at September Event

New Model Quantity Next Year Greater Than This Year

At the financial report meeting, Leapmotor CFO Li Tengfei answered around 16 related questions. The following is the transcript of the Q&A session of the financial report meeting. Carwest made some readability adjustments without changing the original meaning, and also integrated content of the same type:

1、Can you break down the revenue contribution of Leapmotor's non-vehicle businesses such as carbon credits and R&D services in the second quarter?

Li Tengfei: The overall carbon credit revenue of Leapmotor in the first half of the year was between 800 million to 900 million, around 500 million in the second quarter. Although Leapmotor International achieved a very brilliant sales performance in Europe, the unit selling price of carbon credits decreased compared to last year. Therefore, the overall revenue of carbon credits differs from the sales volume increase proportion compared to last year.

Regarding the contribution of R&D services, in the first half of the year, Leapmotor and FAW, Stellantis and other relevant partners explored R&D services deeper. Everyone will soon receive the good news of our external announcement regarding the reached cooperation.

2、Looking ahead to the second half of the year, will there be some changes in cost-side pressure? Has Leapmotor's latest profit guidance been updated?

Li Tengfei: From the perspective of the full year, we set an annual net profit target of around 5 billion yuan at the beginning of the year. But looking from now, it is indeed very difficult to achieve a net profit target of around 5 billion yuan.

Mainly due to the price increase of raw materials this year, bringing about a decline in gross margin.

From the company's current analysis, we expect the annual net profit level to be around 3 billion yuan, the gross margin level is expected to be around 13 to 14 percent, and the whole vehicle gross margin level should be around 10 to 11 percent.

3、How does Leapmotor realize revenue in cooperation with Stellantis? Will there be model expansion subsequently? Can Leapmotor International use Stellantis's supply chain?

Li Tengfei: We expect further good news to come recently. We reached further cooperation implementation with partners, which is actually more based on Leapmotor's current supply capability of mature three-electric components, empowering our partners in parts supply.

Regarding the revenue brought by cooperation to Leapmotor, I still hope to wait until our cooperation implementation, then elaborate on the specific revenue with everyone.

Regarding localized procurement, including whether to use Stellantis's supply chain, Stellantis Group's supply chain capability locally is certainly a very important resource for us. When we choose the supply chain, Stellantis Group will also give us Leapmotor and Leapmotor International very strong support.

Of course, we will not completely borrow or rely on Stellantis's existing local supply chain. We will also consider comprehensively. Based on the original intention of creating products with better quality and lower cost, we will select the supply chain with Leapmotor International and Stellantis.

Of course, with a flexible international localized supply chain as the foundation, our overall work will be more efficient, and cost control will also be more effective.

4、Can next year's overseas target be updated? How is it divided between regions?

Li Tengfei: This year we gave an overseas sales target of 100,000 to 150,000 units. Looking now, our originally set challenge target for this year, which is 150,000 units, is basically no problem. We expect this year's overseas sales can reach 200,000 units.

So for our next year's overseas sales target, from the company including Leapmotor International, also including Stellantis Group, we are very confident about next year's overseas sales. Our next year's overall overseas sales target is around 350,000 to 400,000 units level. We hope to challenge the sales level of 400,000 units.

Regarding sales distribution, from next year's situation, our overall sales distribution will not have too much difference from this year. The most important market is still Europe. Of course, next year we will further open up the South America market, including Southeast Asia market, Asia-Pacific region market, and Australia market, will also continue to exert effort.

5、What is Leapmotor's overseas capacity situation next year?

Li Tengfei: Actually, we now in Europe, South America, mainly utilize our partners' factories for localized production. We have full discussions with Stellantis Group, and our partners are very capable.

Whether in Europe, South America, or other regions, in the factories Stellantis Group cooperates with us, our partners fully guarantee Leapmotor's capacity, prioritizing Leapmotor's capacity.

Everyone knows, Stellantis Group in Europe, South America and other regions, capacity is still relatively sufficient. So in terms of capacity, this is actually Leapmotor's advantage. Because we have such powerful partners, so we do not need to worry about capacity matters. We both have full communication, also have very good planning for capacity, can fully meet Leapmotor's localization needs in Europe, South America, including other regions.

6、What is the actual profit level per vehicle overseas currently?

Li Tengfei: From the perspective of Leapmotor company, Leapmotor's actual gross margin is the gross margin of this period before selling models to Leapmotor International. We have an agreement between both parties, so our gross margin level is indeed relatively low. Now looking at it, the three-year agreement period is actually gradually coming.

Of course for both of us, we will sit down for full communication. From the actual situation, in these three years, our cooperation has made huge progress. Everyone can see it from sales volume. Also Leapmotor International realized profit last year, this year Leapmotor International's operation situation is also very good. We achieved rapid sales progress under such a model. So next, everyone will also further discuss Leapmotor International's operation.

From our perspective, now we still prioritize overseas market sales volume, because overseas market is currently a rapid growth period. We need to grab the critical period of overseas market development as quickly as possible.

From the perspective of profit, we of course also value profit, but we will put sales volume growth in the most important position.

7、Under the circumstance of small amount of R&D investment, what is the secret of Leapmotor's excellent assisted driving performance?

Li Tengfei: Leapmotor's overall intelligent driving performance this year has gained recognition from the vast number of consumers.

In September this year, we will launch intelligent driving products under the new architecture. I will give a spoiler in advance. Our intelligent driving products under the new architecture have a huge, leapfrogging improvement compared to current products.

As for why investment is small but output is high, actually Leapmotor has always had continuous investment in intelligent driving, not just started investing recently. It is just that the previous stage focused more on laying the foundation. Under the circumstance that the technical route is not clear, we did not rush to invest.

Until we saw technical routes such as physical models, and considered them as the development direction of future intelligent driving, in the second half of last year we overall increased investment in intelligent driving, both in terms of talent and investment.

Plus the models we launched last year, many models carried our own products, generated a large amount of data. So several reasons made our intelligent driving this year have a bigger improvement, which is also the core logic we can launch further products in September.

We have relatively precise grasp of the overall direction, took fewer detours. So our investment was relatively low. But once we determined it, we increased investment strength. Because we have a good foundation, in not too long a time, we achieved significant progress.

8、Is the upper limit of Leapmotor's intelligent driving technical route pure unmanned driving?

Li Tengfei: Actually, whether L2+, L3, or L4, Leapmotor has layout, including intelligent driving software and hardware.

This hardware includes intelligent driving itself's hardware, also includes intelligent chassis hardware. We have a full series layout.

9、In Leapmotor's overseas sales volume, what will be the localization rate? Is there a change in the expectation of Spain factory starting production in October?

Li Tengfei: Regarding Spain factory production start, Leapmotor plans in October for Mr. Zhu (Leapmotor Technology Founder, Chairman and CEO Zhu Jiangming) to lead the company management to Spain factory. Participate in B10 model's localized production start ceremony together with Stellantis executives. Overall timeline progress is very smooth.

Regarding next year's localized production volume, actually next year the main selling local model we have is only B10 one model. So next year in the whole 350,000 to 400,000 units sales volume, the B10 production volume from localized production is not that big.

Because this is also our first year overseas localized production. Involves our and partner's fit. We expect next year's localized production volume is around 50,000 units level.

If policy changes are more favorable, then our overall localized production volume can actually increase. Production is not a problem. Actually we are more with partners to create value for the whole Leapmotor sales volume.

Indeed localization can bring tariff optimization. But we also see localization in parts procurement, indeed compared to domestic parts procurement there will be relatively obvious price increase. Actually after offsetting both, localized gross margin level has improvement, but not as obvious as everyone imagined.

Of course, we are also predicting EU tariff policy changes. We think localization will have more favorable policies, or policies will lean more towards localization.

We think localization's improvement on net profit, actually is not at present, but in the near future. With further policy changes, enhance the important value of localization.

We think whether in Europe, in South America, or in other places in the world, localization is always pursued by Leapmotor. We think localization is always a major strategic direction for us going overseas.

10、Regarding Leapmotor September technology launch event, is there any other information leaked?

Li Tengfei: Regarding September technology launch event, basically set in September 16.

At the technology launch event, besides intelligent driving, actually there will be many major technology information releases. Also there will be many industry senior experts and major guests to participate.

I can tell everyone, whether in intelligent driving aspect, or in battery, electric drive aspects, there will be major technology releases.

11、What are the prospects regarding robotics business?

Li Tengfei: Previously in our newly set company, we added a business scope. This is also a normal addition action.

But I can say this to everyone, we think new energy vehicle enterprises, especially new energy vehicle enterprises with full-domain self-research capability, are one of the enterprises most qualified to do embodied robots.

Leapmotor has its own plan. Moreover, in the near future, everyone will receive our official announcement of Leapmotor's specific information release regarding robots.

12、What is the reason for gross margin expected increase in second half of year compared to previous quarter?

Li Tengfei: First is Leapmotor overall sales volume rise very fast. Product scale effect brought optimization.

Second point is material cost price increase aspect. Everyone can see bulk raw materials price increase. Actually after a wave of price increase in first half of year, now already stabilized. We judge second half bulk raw materials price increase will maintain in relatively stable state.

With our scale improvement bringing cost scale effect release. At the same time under further optimization of material cost and manufacturing expense, come to push our gross margin.

Of course our current gross margin, actually also basically returned to our same period last year level. This cannot be said as a particularly excellent performance. But we also think under such background, able to do this point, still went through whole company above and below unremitting efforts.

13、2027 new car planning currently what can be revealed?

Li Tengfei: Leapmotor this year's new cars already basically launched. Might later have individual model small change launch.

2027 Leapmotor new model launch quantity greater than 2026. D series will have new product launch. C series both has new product launch, also has existing C series new generation product launch. New generation product is our next generation product. C series and B series both will have.

So next year is still Leapmotor's product major year. Moreover it is a very major product year. Our company internal from product itself preparation aspect is not a problem. We are repeatedly pushing our product rhythm.

Due to indeed new products more, plus existing products also have annual change launch. So next year's listing rhythm, launch rhythm, how can ensure each product launch in good time point, this is what we are currently focusing on considering.

14、What is the reason for first half investment income loss?

Li Tengfei: One aspect is Leapmotor International has a little small loss. Main source is exchange gain/loss caused impact. Second half expected to make up first half loss. Leapmotor International this year overall profit. We feel no too big problem.

15、Does Leapmotor have some breakthroughs in shipping capability aspect?

Li Tengfei: Due to China new energy vehicle export explosive growth. Shipping whether RoRo ships or various aspects, indeed in first half presented relatively tense state.

Leapmotor also cooperates with major shipping companies. Also includes cooperating with Stellantis Group in deep communication and cooperation. Overall, currently compared to March, April time shipping speed has certain improvement. We think can guarantee our full year overseas 200,000 units sales.

16、Currently Leapmotor overseas channels exceeded 1,000 stores. Subsequent planning how?

Li Tengfei: Our channels mainly in Europe. In Europe our channels will also further develop. Especially our previously layout relatively small Eastern Europe, Northern Europe etc. countries.

Of course, our overseas channels next step focus point more will be in South America. Leapmotor South America channels quantity now rise speed very fast. Last month Leapmotor formally enter Argentina market. Including Brazil, Chile, Uruguay etc. South America markets. In rapid development and expansion. Also includes our Asia-Pacific region channels further development.

From our perspective, our partners in Europe, South America, Asia-Pacific channels very rich, strength very strong. Like Stellantis Group in South America is market share ranked number one group. Moreover leads second market share very much. So we borrow our partner's strength. Overseas channels progress will be very efficient. Lay foundation for our sales doubling.

02.

First Half Revenue 38.11 Billion Yuan

Net Profit Year-over-Year Growth About 600%

From the financial report meeting, can feel, Leapmotor executives for Leapmotor performance and subsequent development very confident. This naturally has Leapmotor in 2026 first half performance announcement expressed strong momentum support.

According to Zhejiang Leapmotor Technology Co., Ltd. (hereinafter referred to as Leapmotor) released ended June 30, 2026 six-month interim performance announcement. Leapmotor in 2026 first half revenue was RMB 38.11 billion yuan. Compared to 2025 first half 24.25 billion yuan increase 57.2%. Leapmotor side explained mainly due to whole vehicle and spare parts delivery volume increase.

▲Leapmotor 2026 First Half Revenue

Regarding gross margin aspect, Leapmotor 2026 first half gross margin was 11.7%. Compared to 2025 first half 14.1% decreased 2.4 percentage points. Leapmotor side explained mainly due to raw material cost increase impact and whole vehicle product mix changes.

▲Leapmotor 2026 First Half Gross Profit

First half 2026, Leapmotor's net profit was 210 million yuan. While 2025 first half was 30 million yuan. Year-over-year growth about 600%.

▲Leapmotor 2026 First Half Net Profit

Regarding sales volume aspect, first half 2026, Leapmotor total sales volume was 356,500 units. Compared to 2025 same period delivery volume growth 60.8%. In this year already published data first 5 months comparable terminal license quantity, Leapmotor ranked global new energy passenger car brand fourth name.

Among them, Leapmotor in 2026 first half export volume 96,300 units. Year-over-year growth 372.6%. Already exceeded 2025 full year export total. Accounted for 2026 first half Leapmotor total sales 27.0%. July 2026, Leapmotor export volume 17,600 units. 2026 Jan-July cumulative export volume already reached 113,900 units.

In July 2026, Leapmotor delivery volume reached new high, reached 101,300 units. Single month delivery first break 100,000 unit threshold. Become domestic first single month delivery volume break 100,000 units new force brand.

Zoom In

▲Leapmotor 2026 First Half Sales

Leapmotor 2026 first half R&D expense was 2.32 billion yuan. Compared to 2025 first half 1.89 billion yuan increase 22.8%. Leapmotor side introduced this change mainly due to R&D investment intensity increase and R&D personnel increase.

Leapmotor side also specially mentioned. Currently City Navigation assisted driving function already at Leapmotor ABCD full series models open. At same time will 2026 third quarter to LEAP3.0 architecture models push national city navigation assisted driving. In addition, Leapmotor will 2026 September launch new architecture assisted driving solution.

▲Leapmotor 2026 First Half R&D Performance

Regarding cash reserve aspect, until June 30, 2026, Leapmotor's cash and cash equivalents, restricted cash, financial assets at fair value through profit or loss and bank time deposit balance is RMB 38.59 billion yuan.

Regarding sales channel aspect, until June 30, 2026, Leapmotor's sales service network has covered 298 cities. City coverage rate reached 87.4%. Cumulative layout 1,064 sales stores (including 459 Leapmotor centers and 605 experience centers) and 562 service stores. Compared to 2025 same period increase 258 sales stores and 101 service stores.

▲Leapmotor 2026 First Half Sales Channel Expansion

Regarding going overseas aspect, until 2026 June end, Leapmotor International B.V. (Leapmotor International) already in Europe, South America, North America, Asia-Pacific, Middle East and Africa etc. over 45 international markets established over 1,000 outlets both having sales and after-sales service functions. Among them Europe over 900 stores, Asia-Pacific market over 50 stores, South America market over 30 stores, North America market over 30 stores.

At same time, Leapmotor brand is accelerating promote overseas localized assembly production layout.

In Southeast Asia, Leapmotor Malaysia localized assembly project has achieved substantive progress: Relying on Stellantis Group located Malaysia Kedah State Gurun factory. C10 model completed SOP and entered formal mass production stage. Soon in Malaysia market start sales. B10 model planned to Q3 achieve mass production and simultaneous launch.

In Europe, Leapmotor Spain localized assembly project progressed simultaneously. Stellantis Group Zaragoza factory completed supporting transformation. B10 project expected Q3 formal production start. B05 project planned within year trial production, 2027 formal mass production. For above models matching battery factory also completed transformation, expected Q3 start mass production.

In South America, Leapmotor and Stellantis Group already selected Stellantis Group Brazil Goiania factory as South America localized assembly project assembly base. Will first start Leapmotor B10 localized assembly production. Planned to 2027 second half formally put into mass production.

▲Leapmotor 2026 First Half Globalization Progress

03.

Conclusion: Leapmotor Accelerates Sprinting

In fiercely competitive new energy vehicle market, Leapmotor in 2026 first half handed out a remarkable scorecard. Revenue and sales volume move together. Net profit also 600% growth. Showed strong development momentum.

In addition, Leapmotor single month delivery volume already broke 100,000 units threshold. Overseas market expansion also results splendid. Also is accelerating promote overseas localized assembly production layout. Further push global market performance.

Combining next year new model quantity greater than this year and next year 350,000 to 400,000 units overseas sales target looking, Leapmotor is accelerating sprinting.

On July 29, 2025, Changan Automobile Group Co., Ltd. was officially established in Chongqing, becoming the third central state-owned automobile enterprise in China.

Recently, on the first anniversary of its establishment, Changan Automobile delivered an impressive performance report: achieving the milestone of rolling out 30 million independent brand vehicles first, obtaining the first batch of L3 autonomous driving dedicated license plates and L4 testing licenses, and realizing the large-scale commercialization of high-level intelligent driving with the fully self-developed "Tianshu Pilot" assisted driving system...

Strategic Foundation Building "Innovation, Entrepreneurship, Intelligent Awakening of Changan" — "1445" Strategy

In 2025, Changan Automobile's total annual sales volume reached 2.913 million units, an 8.5% year-on-year increase, creating a 9-year high. Most significantly, independent brand sales broke through 30 million units, becoming the fastest Chinese automaker to reach 30 million units.

In April 2026, facing the new stage of the "15th Five-Year Plan", Changan Automobile of China officially released the "1445" Strategy: with the core vision of building a world-class automobile group, focusing on 4 core businesses: complete vehicles, parts, modern services, and ecosystem industries, comprehensively advancing 4 major transformations: intelligence, greenness, globalization, and integration, by 2030 achieving 5 major doubling: new energy vehicle sales, overseas complete vehicle sales, operating income, total profit, and brand value — New Energy 2.4 million units, Overseas 1.5 million units, Operating Income 600 billion yuan, Size entering Global Automobile Enterprise TOP 10, Brand Value 200 billion yuan, entering World Brand Top 500. Strategically integrating the resources of Avatr and Deepal Automobile, the two brands will start comprehensive strategic collaboration, creating a global mid-to-high-end brand group exceeding 1.5 million+, with overseas sales share exceeding 40%.

Under the guidance of the strategy, growth momentum is strong.In the first half of 2026, Changan Automobile's cumulative deliveries exceeded 1.1956 million units, of which overseas deliveries reached 402,000 units, a significant year-on-year increase of 35.1%. July deliveries were 207,100 units, of which overseas deliveries were 82,300 units, a 79.1% year-on-year increase, rising year-on-year for 6 consecutive months; New energy deliveries were 96,500 units, a 28.8% year-on-year increase.

"Three Major Plans" Deeply Advancing Brands, Intelligence, and Global Expansion to Fully Blossom

New Energy "Shangri-La" Plan Gains "Acceleration".

Avatr, Deepal Automobile, Changan Qiyuan three major global digital intelligence new energy car brands blooming, Changan Blue Whale Super Engine released, co-releasing global sodium battery strategy with CATL.In 2025, Changan Automobile's new energy sales exceeded 1.11 million units, becoming the first central state-owned automobile enterprise to achieve over a million new energy sales annually. "Golden Bell Shield Battery" won the 2025 National Science and Technology Progress Award, safely protecting over 2.1 million users.In 2026, new energy brand matrix fully exerts strength, cumulative deliveries in the first half were 456,000 units, a 5.2% year-on-year increase.

AvatrSteadily standing at the forefront of new luxury, Building Avatr Strategy 2.0, joining hands with Changan Automobile, Huawei, and CATL to enter a new stage of integrated development. New Avatr 12 fully upgraded and launched, Avatr 06T launched and released, Avatr 07 100,000th complete vehicle rolled off the line, Taixi Intelligent Control 2.0 technology released. Self-developed Avatr Taixi distributed electric drive, with 3 industry firsts and 12 global firsts, continuously demonstrating China's new luxury manufacturing strength.

Deepal AutomobileContinuously attracting the younger generation with technology and fashion, Cumulatively launched 7 models including Deepal S05, S09, L06, etc., Deepal L06 selected as the representative model of CCTV Grand Festival "Yancheng Carnival", Deepal S05 cumulative sales since launch exceeded 240,000 units, Deepal SL03 approved for the first national L3 autonomous driving dedicated formal license plate.

Changan QiyuanDeeply cultivating the new mainstream home market, Creating new global flagship products like Q05, A06, etc., New Q05 won the Italian A' Design Gold Award, Delivered over 80,000 units in the first half, Successively won the monthly sales championship of compact SUVs.

Intelligentization "Beidou Tianshu" Plan Welcomes "New Milestone".

In June 2026, "Changan Tianshu Pilot" combined assisted driving technology released, Over 1000 R&D engineers spent over 1800 days, Successfully built a fully self-developed, full-scenario coverage, full-dimension protection solution pursuing extreme safety assisted driving. During the R&D process, cumulative building of over 400,000 virtual simulation test scenarios, Intelligent driving daily simulation mileage exceeded 3.3 million kilometers, Equivalent to circling the Earth over 80 times daily.

Changan Tianshu Large Model formally passed the filing and approval of the "Generative Artificial Intelligence Service" by the National Internet Information Office, becoming the first automobile enterprise in Chongqing to obtain this qualification, using fully self-developed multimodal foundation to boost vehicle intelligence evolution.

In April 2026, Changan Automobile, having become the first batch of L3 intelligent connected vehicle pilot units, also approved for L4 Robotaxi testing license, Launching high-level autonomous driving multi-scenario landing testing and closed-loop verification, Becoming an automotive enterprise possessing full-compliance, full-scenario L4 autonomous driving practical test qualification.

In addition, Changan Tianshu Intelligent Robot Company officially established, Enter the humanoid robot field, Reshaping mobility ecology with embodied intelligence.

Globalization "Inclusive like the Ocean" Plan Pressing the "Fast Forward" Button.

In 2025, Complete vehicle overseas sales cumulative 637,000 units, Year-on-year increase of 18.9%. January-June 2026, Overseas deliveries 402,000 units, Year-on-year increase of 35.1%. Steadily implementing the globalization "Inclusive like the Ocean" Plan 2.0, Continuously deepening the "152" global development layout, Continuously deepening localization operations and brand building in key global regions.

Since 2026, New UNI-T put into production and rolled off the line at Brazil factory, Received praise from Brazilian President Lula; Thailand Rayong factory 20,000th complete vehicle rolled off line. Global vehicle crash safety performance strategy differentially adapted for different regional regulations and road conditions, Building a solid safety baseline. Global channels expanded to 129 countries and regions, Cumulatively built 22 global manufacturing bases. Vigorously promoting the "Overseas Doubling" Plan, Accelerating the realization of the progression leap from product going global to brand going global, industry going global.

Whole and Zero Precision Docking Platform Changan Automobile Innovation Technology and Ecosystem Cooperation Exhibition Reopening on 9.17

Jointly created by Changan Automobile and Chongqing Automobile Engineering Society —'Changan Automobile Innovation Technology and Ecosystem Cooperation Exhibition' Series Activities, Since being held in 2023, Cumulatively attracted over 500 well-known companies to visit Changan Automobile, Building a solid bridge for cross-border cooperation, joint R&D, vehicle-parts coordination, digital intelligence manufacturing, etc., Effectively supporting Changan Automobile's project sourcing, ecosystem partner expansion, and full-chain resource docking.

Three special sessions planned for June, July, September 2026, The first two sessions successfully held on June 26, and July 23-24 at Changan Automobile Global R&D Center, Cumulatively attracting nearly 160 quality supply chain enterprises to participate, Nearly 2000 professionals attended for docking and exchange.

At the July annual special session scene, Changan Automobile Vice President He Gang stated in the opening ceremony speech, Currently Changan Automobile global ecosystem partners have broken 15,000, Covering core fields such as chassis, power, intelligent connected, new energy three-electric systems, high-precision maps, chips, software, computing power, etc. Changan Automobile actively opened SDA complete vehicle intelligent architecture and Tianshu Intelligent Driving Platform to global ecosystem partners, Achieving technology open source, capability sharing, joint definition, collaborative innovation. Facing new opportunities and challenges, Changan Automobile is willing to stand with industry chain, supply chain partners, Establishing a new type of strategic partnership for symbiotic co-prosperity.

September 17 · Changan Automobile Global R&D Center, 2026 Changan Automobile Innovation Technology and Ecosystem Cooperation Exhibition (September Special Session)Will focus onfields such as automotive materials, lightweighting, intelligent manufacturing, testing, powertrains, interiors/exteriors, new parts, etc., Specially inviting over 60 quality supply chain enterprises to participate in product display and technical presentations. At that time, Changan Automobile will arrange procurement, R&D, manufacturing, quality and other core department heads to attend and exchange, Helping participating enterprises show cutting-edge strength in all aspects, Achieve in-depth communication and precise docking with Changan Automobile.

Activity Content:

Mainly includes Guest tour, Product display, Innovation Technology Forum, Supply and Procurement Docking, Visit Interaction five parts, Specially inviting well-known industry chain supply chain enterprises to participate.

(I) Guest Tour

Inviting Changan Automobile executives, Chongqing Automobile Engineering Society leaders, And attending leaders and guests jointly visit product display, Exchange and interact with participating enterprises.

(II) Product Display

Specially inviting over 60 well-known industry chain supply chain enterprises to participate in product display in fields such as automotive materials, lightweighting, intelligent manufacturing, testing, powertrains, interiors/exteriors, new parts, etc.

Booths Unified construction by the organizer.

(III) Innovation Technology Forum (New Technology and Product Promotion)

According to Changan Automobile R&D and procurement key focused technology directions, Hold multiple innovation technology forums, Specially invite guests to attend and exchange.

Participating Entities: Deepal Automobile, Avatr, Changan Kaicheng, Changan Automobile Technology Project Department, Procurement Center, Forward-looking Institute, Manufacturing Center, Research General Institute, Platform and Module Development Department, Change Efficiency Department, Quality Department, Product Development Center, Mold Division, Design Center etc. Brand and Core Department Heads; Industry Chain Supply Chain Enterprise Representatives; Industry Organizations, Research Institutes Universities Representatives.

(IV) Supply and Procurement Docking

Changan Automobile will arrange Procurement, Technology, R&D, Production Manufacturing etc. relevant department heads to attend, To carry out in-depth docking with participating enterprises.

(V) Visit Interaction

Visit Changan Automobile Global R&D Center, Understand Changan Automobile R&D system on site, Experience Digital Intelligence New Cars.

Previous Sessions Highlights

Exhibition Theme (Key Procurement Directions):

Materials and Lightweighting: High-performance automotive steel, Magnesium/Aluminum Alloy, Automotive Plastic/Composite Materials, Lubrication/Friction Materials, Sealing, Functional and Energy Materials, etc.

Advanced Manufacturing Technology and Equipment: Complete Vehicle Design and R&D, Three-Electric System Manufacturing Technology, Stamping/Welding/Painting/Assembly Engineering, Automated Assembly, Machine Vision, Industrial Software, Digital Twin, AI and Big Data Applications, etc.

Inspection, Testing and Quality Control: Complete Vehicle/Parts/Battery/Electric Drive Testing, ADAS and Autonomous Driving Testing, NVH Analysis, EMC Testing, Reliability/Lifecycle Testing, Quality Management Solutions, etc.

New Supply Chain and Service Providers: Vehicle-mounted Embodied Intelligence Systems and Core Hardware, etc. Emerging Fields, Power and Chassis Key Components, Intelligent Electric Vehicle Various New Parts such as Interiors/Exteriors Systems, Vehicle-mounted Embodied Intelligence Systems and Core Hardware, etc. Molds, Standard Parts, Sealing Parts, Fasteners, Pipe Fittings, Pipelines, Accessories, etc.; And Related Technical Service Providers.

A familiar prospectus has been posted on the HKEX website.

On May 28, following the invalidation of its first submission in October last year, Intelligent Driving Solutions Provider Suzhou Tantong Vision Electronic Technology Co., Ltd. (Tantong Vision) launched another bid for the HKEX Main Board, with HSBC and Huatai International as joint lead managers.

In 2026, as the intelligent driving track shifts from 'storytelling' to 'mass production', Tantong Vision's second submission is not only a capital probe, but also a comprehensive review of the survival status of Chinese intelligent driving suppliers.

This company, regarded as a representative of the 'Computing Efficiency School', is connected to a prestigious industrial capital camp ranging from ZF to SAIC and BAIC, while simultaneously facing the realistic dilemma of tight cash flow and a significant decline overseas. In this IPO game, brilliance and pain coexist.

01

Who is 'Tantong Vision'?

Wang Xi, the founder of Tantong Vision, is a typical 'returnee' technical expert. He graduated from Beihang University and later pursued a PhD in Computer Science at the University of Reading in the UK.

Before deciding to start a business, Wang Xi worked as an algorithm engineer and technical lead at automotive parts supplier TRW Automotive and ZF, deeply participating in the development of early ADAS systems.

In 2016, Wang Xi seized the domestic automotive intelligence hotspot and returned to China to establish Tantong Vision in Suzhou, positioning it as a 'software algorithm-driven intelligent driving' local solutions provider.

The company's name 'Tantong' implies 'Eye of the Sky', aiming to build a visual hub for vehicles to perceive everything. Starting with visual perception algorithms, it gradually expanded to integrated driving and parking domain controllers, L4 level autonomous driving systems, and other overall solutions combining hardware and software.

Tantong Vision Financing Situation. Source: Qichacha

Shortly after establishment, Tantong Vision received angel round financing from Delian Capital and Shengshi Investment. In the following ten years, Tantong Vision completed more than 10 financing rounds in total, with a financing amount close to 1 billion yuan.

From the equity structure disclosed in the prospectus, Tantong Vision built a deeply bound 'Industry + Capital' ecosystem.

On the one hand, industry partners provide backing. Global automotive parts giant ZF is not only its Series C lead investor but also its strategic partner, holding 6.93% of Tantong Vision shares, ranking as the fourth largest shareholder; domestically, SAIC Group holds shares through SAIC North America Investment, and BAIC Group is involved through BAIC Investment, with Horizon Robotics and SenseTime also being strategic investors.

On the other hand, local state-owned assets provide escort. State-owned background funds such as Tangshan Robot Fund and Wujin Financial Holdings entered in Series D and D+ rounds, providing about 523 million yuan in capital support.

Equity Structure as of the Last Practicable Date

As of now, Wang Xi controls approximately 40.84% of the company's equity through direct shareholding and employee shareholding platforms, maintaining control of the company.

02

Walking with Two Legs

Tantong Vision adopted a 'Dual-Track Parallel' strategy in its business layout.

In the L2-L2+ Level Advanced Driver Assistance field, Tantong Vision's choice was very pragmatic. It did not blindly chase the 'Arms Race' of computing stacking, but walked a high cost-performance route.

As a typical Vision-based Intelligent Driving Supplier, its L2 mass production solutions focus on visual perception, integrating millimeter-wave radar and ultrasonic radar, capable of achieving advanced functions on lower computing power platforms. For example, solutions based on the Horizon J6B chip (about 20 TOPS) can support integrated driving and parking, Highway NOA.

This approach hits the pain point of the 100,000 to 200,000 yuan mainstream model segment being cost-sensitive. According to data from Frost & Sullivan, based on 2024 installed volume, Tantong Vision is China's second-largest software-centric L2-L2+ solutions provider providing both driving and parking solutions, with a market share of 14.3%.

2024 China Software-Centric Suppliers with Integrated Driving and Parking Capabilities Landscape

As of the Last Practicable Date, Tantong Vision received L2-L2+ solution designation letters for 198 models from 23 car brands, and achieved mass production for 105 models from 6 car brands; among the 198 models with designation letters, 87 cover overseas markets, of which 59 have achieved mass production.

However, it is worth noting that the L2-L2+ market is undergoing intense 'Red Oceanization'.

On the one hand, local Tier 1s such as Jingwei Hengrun and Fortec are accelerating their chase; on the other hand, some head car companies are starting to switch low-level intelligent driving solutions from outsourcing to internal integration.

Whether Tantong Vision can maintain its leading position in the 'Cost-Effective Solutions' field depends on whether it can continuously maintain the optimization capability of algorithms on low computing platforms, which requires continuous investment in R&D.

In the high-level L4 Level Autonomous Driving field, Tantong Vision plays more of a 'Pioneer' role. This is also the fastest-growing sector for it in the last two years.

As early as 2019, it participated in the Shanghai Yangshan Port 5G Intelligent Heavy Truck project. Currently, its L4 solutions cover Robobus, Robotaxi, and Robotruck. Among them, Robobus is its most representative product line, already in regular trial operation on public roads in cities such as Suzhou and Tianjin.

In 2025, Tantong Vision generated revenue of 375 million yuan from L4 Level solutions, accounting for more than 68% of the company's total revenue, with most revenue coming from L4 Level software solutions.

However, on the other side of the coin are the twists and turns of commercialization. Although L4 business revenue surged, its delivery form is currently mainly 'Hardware-Software Integrated Solutions', a model that is essentially close to 'Project-based Delivery' or 'Small Fleet Deployment', which has significant differences from the high gross margin, mass replication logic of 'Pure Software Licensing + White-box Delivery' in L2 business.

This directly led to large fluctuations in the gross margin of L4 business: in some projects with a high proportion of self-developed hardware, the gross margin once dropped to 15%.

As of the submission date, although the company holds over 1 billion yuan in L4 Letters of Intent Orders covering 2,500 vehicles, these orders are expected to be delivered successively within the next three to five years, with limited improvement in cash flow in the short term.

In addition, Tantong Vision also has some receivables from engineering services, mainly involving road testing, data collection support and data annotation services, as well as the company's proprietary toolchain.

03

Financial Double-Sided Mirror

The financial section of the prospectus reveals the most realistic 'Dark Side' of the intelligent driving industry: the extreme struggle between scale and losses, and the tense game between book cash and operational burn.

Revenue high growth, but structure fluctuates violently.

Financial data shows that the company's revenue grew explosively, from 172 million yuan in 2022 to 483 million yuan in 2024, with a CAGR of 67.7%. Full-year 2025 revenue grew further to 550 million yuan.

But the change in revenue structure is obvious. In 2023, the company relied on L2-L2+ business, accounting for 90.2%; by 2024, the L4 business share rose to 50.2%; in 2025, the L4 business share further rose to 68%. This 'Cliff-like' structural switch, while proving its L4 technology found landing scenarios, also led the market to question whether its L2 business has hit the ceiling.

The divergence of gross margin and net profit is the biggest challenge Tantong Vision faces.

From gross margin, the overall gross margin hovers around 30%, which is a medium level in the technology-intensive intelligent driving industry. But breaking it down, the gross margin of L2-L2+ business usually maintains above 40%, the pure software licensing model, while the gross margin of L4 business is significantly pulled down by the increased hardware proportion in 'Hardware-Software Integrated' delivery.

From net profit, although the surface loss is large, 463 million losses in 2024 and about 200 million losses in 2025, this includes a large amount of 'Paper Losses' caused by changes in the fair value of preferred shares. The Adjusted Net Profit after excluding this factor better reflects the company's real operating status: it narrowed to -4.38 million yuan in 2024, but in 2025 it did not turn positive as the market expected, but recorded about -10.86 million yuan, with losses expanding compared to 2024.

Behind this is an inescapable key premise: the adjusted 'loss reduction' even 'close to break-even', was achieved on the basis of the company continuously compressing R&D investment. R&D expenses dropped from 117 million yuan in 2024 to 92.31 million yuan in 2025, the R&D expense ratio dropped further from 24.3% in 2024 to 16.8%, while in 2022 this figure was as high as 108.7%. For a technology company, whether the 'decline' in R&D intensity will affect future technical moats is a potential risk point.

Cash flow continues to be urgent, the most worrying signal.

According to the latest prospectus, as of December 31, 2025, the company's cash and cash equivalents on the books were 235 million yuan, a net decrease of 139 million yuan compared to 374 million yuan on June 30, 2025, with a faster cash burn rate.

More worth alerting is the trend of operating cash flow turning from positive to negative and the gap continuously expanding. In 2023, the company's operating cash flow net amount was a positive inflow of 115 million yuan, but in 2024 it quickly turned to a net outflow of 189 million yuan, and in 2025 it further deteriorated to a net outflow of 293 million yuan.

At the same time, accounts receivable turnover deteriorated sharply. The company's trade receivables rose from 89 million yuan in 2023 to 548 million yuan in 2025, a growth of more than five times in three years, while the revenue increase in the same period was only about 2.7 times.

More worrying is that the accounts receivable turnover days jumped from 191 days in 2023 and 166 days in 2024 to 300 days in 2025, meaning that the company needs an average of nearly a year from completing delivery to recovering funds. This is equivalent to providing long-term interest-free funding for customers, further aggravating liquidity pressure when funds were already tight.

In addition, although Tantong Vision is the first Chinese intelligent driving software provider to go overseas, its overseas business experienced a significant decline in 2025. In 2023, Tantong Vision's overseas revenue was 127 million yuan, accounting for 62.2% of total revenue; by 2025, overseas revenue dropped to 11 million yuan, accounting for only 2.0%.

This adds a touch of uncertainty to its globalization story against the backdrop of complex global geopolitics and stricter data regulation on intelligent cars in some countries.

04

Conclusion

Tantong Vision's second attempt is a microcosm of the intelligent driving industry entering the 'Elimination Round' stage.

On the positive side, it hit the dual rhythm of L2 cost-effectiveness and L4 scenario landing, and the adjusted net profit is close to break-even in a specific measure, which provided investors with a 'storyline with highlights to tell'.

But from a risk perspective, the situation is far more severe than the first submission. The rapid drift of business focus, the profitability difficulties in the early stage of L4 business commercialization, and the passive contraction of R&D investment, these problems that already existed have not been alleviated.

Tantong Vision L4 Level Intelligent Bus

What truly gives this IPO a 'Survival' color is the substantial deterioration of cash flow data: 235 million yuan in book cash, facing an annual operating cash net outflow of nearly 300 million yuan, the safety margin is less than one year. Superimposed on 300 days of accounts receivable turnover, it means that for every order delivered, the company has to advance nearly a year's cost of capital.

In other words, Tantong Vision is in a dangerous financial window period: The money on hand is only enough to maintain normal operations for less than a year, while the mass delivery and repayment of L4 business requires more time. At a time when the intelligent driving capital heat has subsided and primary market financing has tightened marginally, the company has no more room to wait.

Only six months after the first submission failed, it again challenges the HK stock market. For Tantong Vision, rather than a strategic choice, it is an inevitable move forced by cash.