The 15th Five-Year Plan period represents the decisive stage for China to achieve the Long-Range Objectives for 2035 and build itself into an automotive powerhouse. On April 11–12, the High-Level Forum on Intelligent Electric Vehicle Development (2026) was held under the theme of Intelligence, Green Development, Integration and Internationalization, focusing in depth on the global industrial landscape, AI+automotive, chip computing power and other cutting-edge technologies. Through cross-industry exchanges, the forum aims to clarify industrial strategies, establish a sound and orderly policy and market system, strengthen global coordination, and enable China’s new energy vehicles to achieve steady and sustained growth during the critical window of high-quality development.
Zhao Fei, General Manager of China Changan Automobile
At the forum, Zhao Fei, General Manager of China Changan Automobile, made his first public appearance as a “new member of the new state-owned enterprise” and systematically elaborated on Changan’s strategic layout in four directions: intelligence, green development, integration and globalization.
In terms of intelligence, Changan has obtained MIIT’s first batch of L3 autonomous driving product approval and L4 Robotaxi test licenses, making it the only domestic automaker qualified for fully compliant, full-scenario L4 autonomous driving road tests.In terms of green development, Changan officially launched the Blue Whale Ultra-Hybrid global hybrid solution tailored for China on March 30. Equipped with the world’s first 500Bar ultra-high-pressure direct injection technology, it achieves a thermal efficiency of nearly 45%, bringing family sedan urban fuel consumption into the “2-liter era” and a range of 1,500 kilometers on a full tank. He emphasized that given the reality that 70 million consumers worldwide will still buy fuel vehicles in 2026, meeting diverse user needs is the most pragmatic contribution to the national dual-carbon strategy.
Meanwhile, Zhao Fei pointed out that future competition is essentially ecological competition. Automobiles are evolving from mere means of transportation into “work assistants, life helpers, income generators and emotional companions”. Changan has built a cross-border collaborative industrial ecosystem with leading enterprises including Huawei, CATL, JD.com and Haier, and established sales networks in 118 countries and regions worldwide.
He also put forward three suggestions for industry development:
Jointly create cross-industry win-win business models;
Co-build underlying common technology platforms to cope with global competition;
Accelerate the improvement of regulations, standards and insurance liability systems for intelligent assisted driving.
In his view, Changan will deepen localized operations guided by the philosophy of “No globalization, no Changan; no local bases, no globalization”, and as a state-owned enterprise, help Chinese auto brands achieve a truly global leap.
Edited Speech Transcript
Respected Minister Su, Director Xu, Academician Ouyang, colleagues and experts,
Good morning. It is a great pleasure to represent China Changan Automobile to gather with global wisdom at this high-end forum, and discuss the intelligent, green, integrated and international development of the automotive industry.
Today, from the perspective of a new member of state-owned automotive enterprises, I would like to share our thoughts on industry development.
China Changan Automobile is a young central SOE, established on July 29 last year. It has only been eight months, less than a year old. Today is also our first participation in a forum organized by the CAAM Think Tank under the name of China Changan Automobile. Please allow me to briefly introduce our recent development.
As a newly established enterprise, many of our capabilities are still under construction. Yet Changan’s heritage dates back to the Shanghai Foreign Cannon Bureau founded in 1862, with 164 years of industrial legacy. The combination of a young corporate identity and profound history grants us unique vitality and steadiness, enabling us to innovate boldly while moving steadily.
China Changan’s business covers complete vehicles, auto parts, sales and service, logistics, financial services, motorcycles and emerging industries, with total assets exceeding 300 billion yuan and more than 110,000 employees. Its core assets and businesses include three global digital intelligence new energy brands – Avatr, Deepal and Changan Qiyuan – as well as Changan Kaicheng, which focuses on energy-saving fuel vehicles and light-duty vehicles.
The CPC Central Committee has set our strategic positioning and goal: to build a world-class automotive group with global competitiveness and independent core technologies, and forge a world-class automotive brand.
At present, the energy revolution is profoundly reshaping the industrial landscape. China Changan firmly implements the decisions and arrangements of the CPC Central Committee, closely follows the intelligent, green and integrated development directions outlined in the 15th Five-Year Plan, and fully advances three major initiatives: the new energy Shangri-La Plan, the intelligent Beidou Pivot Plan, and the globalization Haina Baichuan Plan. We are committed to providing better solutions for global green and low-carbon development, national energy security, and users’ mobility life.
Next, I will share China Changan’s reflections and practices in line with the forum theme.
First, Intelligence
With the rapid popularization of intelligent assisted driving and increasingly frequent data interaction, users’ expectations for safety have evolved from “no accidents” to “peace of mind throughout the journey”. We firmly believe that in the intelligent era, safety is not an optional feature but a standard configuration.
Last September, we launched the “New Changan · New Safety – Pivot Intelligence” brand, extending safety from physical protection to a full-dimensional active intelligent “pan-safety” system covering driving, health, psychology and privacy, dedicated to bringing safety to every family.
In December last year, Changan obtained MIIT’s first batch of L3 autonomous driving product approval and China’s first dedicated official license plate for L3 autonomous driving. Recently, we were officially approved for L4 Robotaxi test licenses, becoming the only automaker in China qualified for fully compliant, full-scenario L4 autonomous driving road tests.
Our continuous leadership in autonomous driving and consolidation of core technological advantages rely on strong hardware verification capabilities and a complete testing system. We own a national key laboratory focusing on intelligent vehicle safety technologies, and the Changan Pivot Intelligent Experimental Center, an internationally leading “software proving ground”. Based in Chongqing and serving the world, it enables global collaboration and 24/7 uninterrupted testing, providing strong support for autonomous driving technologies and driving breakthroughs in key core fields.
Second, Green Development
In the new round of energy revolution, automobiles are no longer just energy “consumers”, but important “participants” and “regulators” of the new energy system. We believe that meeting diverse user needs is the most pragmatic contribution to the national dual-carbon strategy.
In terms of market demand, it is estimated that 70 million consumers worldwide will choose fuel vehicles in 2026, while 30 million will opt for new energy vehicles. Global users have demands for battery electric, hybrid and traditional fuel vehicles alike.
Changan has always pursued a path of conservation, efficiency and green development, and deeply participated in building a clean, low-carbon, safe and efficient new energy system. In the new energy sector, we have established three global digital intelligence brands: Avatr, Deepal and Changan Qiyuan. In the fuel vehicle sector, through fundamental innovations in power technology and systematic technological layout, we have continuously launched Blue Whale Ultra-Hybrid, Blue Whale Ultra-PHEV and Blue Whale Ultra-EREV with higher efficiency, stronger power and wider adaptability.
On March 30, we launched Changan Blue Whale Ultra-Hybrid, a global hybrid solution with Chinese characteristics. Supported by 45 years of vehicle manufacturing experience, a global R&D layout across six countries and ten locations, a R&D team of over 24,000 members, full-scenario three-electric technologies, and the “pan-safety” system of Changan Pivot Intelligence, it boasts four core strengths:
Ultra-fuel-efficientThe hybrid engine with the world’s first 500Bar ultra-high-pressure direct injection technology achieves nearly 45% thermal efficiency. Urban fuel consumption for sedans enters the 2-liter era, and for SUVs the 3-liter era, with a range of 1,500 km on a full tank.
Ultra-powerfulThe motor reaches a maximum speed of 20,000 rpm with 180kW peak power, and the battery discharge power is 80kW. Compared with traditional hybrid architectures, this is equivalent to adding an extra 1.0L engine.
Ultra-quietAdopting industry-leading silent structural design, urban noise is reduced by 3 levels and 10 decibels compared with fuel vehicles, equivalent to four layers of soundproof glass.
Ultra-reliableOver 1,000 hours of extreme condition testing, more than 10 times stricter than daily usage. Real vehicle verification exceeds 2 million kilometers, equivalent to 50 laps around the Earth.The CS75 PLUS and Eado PLUS equipped with Blue Whale Ultra-Hybrid will be launched in May this year.
Third, Integration
With the rapid integration of AI, large models and other new production factors into the automotive industry, vehicles are evolving from single transportation tools into work assistants, life helpers, income generators and emotional companions. The industry is accelerating the leap from “large industry, small ecosystem” to “large industry, large ecosystem”. Cross-field and cross-subject ecological collaboration has become inevitable. We believe that future competition is ecological competition.
We actively promote the integration of the real industry with capital, traffic, technology and other emerging formats, forming an ecosystem of “intelligence-service integration”. We cooperate with JD.com on unmanned logistics vehicles to advance smart logistics and vehicle design and production; partner with Haier to build a vehicle-home interconnection ecosystem; work with Huawei and CATL on the Avatr product lineup; and maintain an extensive industrial alliance with more than 10 leading enterprises including ICBC, China Guoxin and CATARC.
Fourth, Globalization
We always uphold the development philosophy of “No globalization, no Changan; no local bases, no globalization”, and fully implement long-termism, localization, systematization and integrated ESG development. We believe in operating locally for local communities, rejecting short-term speculation and one-off deals, supporting the Belt and Road Initiative, and enhancing the international image of Chinese auto brands.
We have established 14 overseas subsidiaries in Mexico, Germany and other countries, 33 collaborative factories globally, and 91 spare parts centers in the UAE and other regions. Our sales network covers 118 countries and regions with more than 19,000 outlets, providing high-quality products and services to global users, creating local employment, cultivating talents, contributing tax revenue, and promoting high-quality local economic and social development.
Recently, under the witness of President Lula of Brazil and Chairman Zhu Huarong, the first China Changan vehicle produced in Brazil rolled off the assembly line, winning high recognition from the local government. In the process of globalization, the international influence of Chinese brands has achieved leapfrog growth.
Today, China’s automotive industry has caught up and even taken the lead in some fields, yet challenges remain. I would like to offer several suggestions:
First, jointly create cross-industry and cross-ecosystem win-win business models.The automotive industry has shifted from single product competition to ecological value competition. To promote high-quality development, we must break away from traditional vehicle manufacturing thinking, build an open and inclusive large-scale industrial ecosystem with cross-border integration and collaborative symbiosis. We suggest sharing resources and complementing advantages to accelerate the establishment of value-creating win-win business models, delivering more intelligent, convenient and emotionally resonant products and experiences, and truly forming a sustainable and evolvable industrial ecosystem.
Second, jointly build cross-category and cross-brand underlying common technology platforms.We suggest automakers and ecological partners jointly develop industry-wide common technology platforms with shared models, data, unified interfaces and safety certifications, promote collaborative standards, concentrate innovation resources on core fields, and enhance competitiveness through scale effects.
Third, jointly improve the application system for new technologies and new relationships.With the accelerated deployment of intelligent assisted driving, the penetration rate of L2 and above has exceeded 60%, significantly improving travel safety and convenience. However, bottlenecks such as inconsistent regulations, unclear liability boundaries between humans and vehicles, mismatched insurance mechanisms and outdated driver training systems restrict large-scale promotion and increase application costs.We suggest accelerating the establishment of a unified national standard system for intelligent assisted driving safety data collection; promote joint innovation between automakers and insurance institutions to form a closed-loop model featuring data-based liability determination, insurance coverage and regulatory traceability; upgrade driver training and examination content to strengthen operation specifications and emergency response capabilities. Systematic construction will support the safe, healthy and orderly development of the industry.
Friends and partners,
As a new central SOE and a new Changan, we will always keep the “national priorities” in mind, give full play to the “three roles” of central SOEs, strive to be the “three pacesetters”, uphold the spirit of “innovation, openness, rationality and perseverance”, join hands with outstanding global partners to build a green mobility ecosystem, and contribute Changan’s strength to the high-quality development of the automotive industry and the construction of a modern industrial system in China.