Xpeng and Volkswagen Group have recently entered into a new agreement to broaden their partnership in various areas. The Chinese electric vehicle (EV) manufacturer made an announcement today regarding the expansion of their technical cooperation. The jointly developed technology architecture will not only be integrated into Volkswagen’s BEV platform but will also be deployed on its gasoline and plug-in hybrid platforms in China.
This new development signifies a significant expansion of the strategic technical cooperation between Xpeng and Volkswagen. It aims to accelerate the implementation of Volkswagen’s software-defined car strategy and enhance its global competitiveness. The cross-platform and cross-powertrain platformization of the E/E Architecture will enable Volkswagen to achieve faster software iteration and over-the-air (OTA) updates, thereby significantly shortening vehicle development cycles.
The joint R&D team has successfully designed and validated the E/E architecture developed for electric vehicle platforms. This architecture is also applicable to internal combustion engine (ICE) and plug-in hybrid electric vehicle (PHEV) platforms. As a result, the expanded technical cooperation will lead to a substantial increase in the number of models equipped with the E/E architecture in the Chinese market. This will enable Volkswagen to achieve significant platform-driven economies of scale.
Ralf Brandstätter, CEO of Volkswagen Group China and Member of the Board of Management of Volkswagen AG for China, emphasized the commitment of Volkswagen’s brands to delivering advanced solutions for customers across all segments. By systematically reducing its cost base, Volkswagen aims to continue offering customers attractive options in the highly competitive Chinese automotive market.
In a previous announcement on July 26, 2023, Volkswagen revealed a $700 million investment in Xpeng to jointly develop two B-segment BEVs under the Volkswagen brand for the Chinese market. Production of these vehicles is expected to commence in 2026. Since then, the two companies have signed several agreements, including a joint procurement plan and the expansion of their cooperation to Volkswagen’s global MEB platform.
Furthermore, in January this year, Xpeng announced a collaboration with Volkswagen to establish one of China’s largest supercharging networks. The partnership between Xpeng and Volkswagen continues to strengthen, with Volkswagen Anhui planning to utilize the CEA architecture, developed in collaboration with Xpeng, for future models following poor sales of the ID.UNYX, which was launched in July.
