Global Times: How full-chain innovation, new production models power the rise of Chinese car brands

BEIJING, Aug. 30, 2026 /PRNewswire/ -- When it comes to the rise of China's auto industry, two numbers are especially revealing: 40.3 percent and 77.4 percent - the first is the domestic market share of Chinese-brand passenger cars in 2023; the second is that share in July 2026.

Cars have changed, and so has the automotive industry. Increasingly, it is Chinese automotive brands that are starting to take center stage. From SAIC, BYD, Geely, Chery and Changan to Leapmotor, Li Auto, NIO, XPeng, Seres, Xiaomi and others, China's homegrown brands are shining like a galaxy of stars as they race on the new-energy vehicle (NEV) track.

The collective rise of Chinese car brands and the new model created by China's automotive industry are two sides of the same coin.

Systemic innovation

The novelty of the new model lies in the "full-chain" systemic innovation.

In the exhibition hall of the Seres super factory in Chongqing, the company's chairman Zhang Zhengping points to seven groups of core components on display, including various domain controllers and telematics modules. "In the past," he said, "cars iterated around the engine, transmission, and chassis. Today, what determines a vehicle's level of advancement is these seven 'boxes.'"

These "boxes" are precisely the critical links in the NEV industry - the "three electrics" system of battery, motor, and electronic control, along with chip computing power, integrated perception, algorithms, and intelligent systems. Whoever masters these tech capabilities holds the initiative in the industry. And these capabilities are now firmly in the hands of Chinese companies.

At every critical link in the NEV industrial chain, Chinese enterprises are leading the way: BYD was the first to fully master the "three electrics," making "charging as fast as refueling" a reality with its flash charge technology; CATL's latest battery technology has raised the peak charging rate to 15C, enabling a charge from 10 percent to 80 percent in just three minutes.

On the software side, Huawei's Qiankun smart driving system progresses from reliance on high-definition maps to map-free full-domain navigation; Changan introduced a generative large model, one of the few in China to pass the filing and approval process for generative AI services; GAC Group's Hyptec GT Climbing Edition features 1,004 chips, all designed domestically.

These are just a few examples. Chinese NEVs have become an "innovation platform for industrial integration," connecting all related industries, including semiconductors, software, materials, processing and manufacturing, battery chemistry, and AI.

New production models

The novelty of the new model lies in the production methods of the "super factories."

Stepping inside the Seres super factory in Chongqing, one will find none of the deafening noise or flying sparks of a traditional auto plant. Stamping, welding, and painting are fully automated. More than 3,000 industrial robots work in precise coordination; automated guided vehicles glide quietly through the workshops. An AI visual inspection system operates continuously, catching even the smallest defects invisible to the human eye.

Zhang, the company's chairman, said that one production line can handle mixed-model welding and assembly for multiple vehicle models. From the launch of its first car, AITO saw its one millionth vehicle roll off the line in just 46 months - setting the global record for the fastest time to one million units among luxury NEVs.

Rapid response to market orders is powered by the "industrial brain," the decision-making core of intelligent manufacturing. With deep AI involvement, Seres' "industrial brain" integrates an industrial ecosystem of more than 300 partners and links directly to over 50 core suppliers. R&D efficiency has risen by 20 percent, and the on-time order delivery rate has improved by 13 percent.

A large number of such super factories form a brilliant constellation for China's NEV industry.

BYD's super factory in Zhengzhou is the world's largest single-site NEV production base, capable of rolling out a vehicle in less than one minute and producing a battery cell roughly every three seconds. At NIO's plant in Hefei, 80 percent of manufacturing scenarios are assisted by AI decision-making. Xiaomi's super factory in Beijing has realized 100 percent unmanned "lights-out" production in the key processes of its six core workshops.

Ten-thousand-ton-class mega integrated die-casting, highly flexible production lines, and full digital traceability are becoming signature manufacturing strengths of China's NEV super factories, delivering both visual impact and intellectual inspiration to visitors from around the world.

More than a century ago, Henry Ford created the industrial assembly line. In the 1950s and 1960s, Toyota pioneered lean production. Today, China's "industrial brain + future factory" manufacturing model delivers far more than simply higher speed or lower cost. It represents a complete restructuring of the entire chain - from R&D and manufacturing to supply and service - and an all-around leap in total-factor productivity.

Vibrant industrial ecosystem

The novelty of the new model lies in the industrial ecosystem of "four-chain integration."

An NEV is composed of tens of thousands of parts. Behind every vehicle brand stands a massive system of supply chains.

"China possesses the world's most complete 'three-electrics' supply chain and the most mature intelligent connected vehicle industrial ecosystem." This was the near-unanimous consensus among those interviewed.

In the Yangtze River Delta, a renowned "four-hour industrial circle" has taken shape: Shanghai supplies the chips and software that form the vehicle's "brain," Jiangsu provides power batteries, Zhejiang supplies integrated die-casting machines, and Anhui does the final step of vehicle assembly. All the supporting components for an NEV can be sourced within a four-hour drive.

"In the past, original equipment manufacturers had to send people to suppliers' plants for inspections and to guard shipments," said Wang Zhijie, director of the Chongqing Municipal Commission of Economy and Information Technology.

"Now, data from key equipment is visible in real time, dramatically improving supply-chain efficiency and security. Drawing on the data accumulated in the supply chain, banks can offer 'data loans' to small and medium-sized enterprises. The innovation chain, industrial chain, capital chain, and talent chain are fully connected in the system," Wang said.

"It is not only the vehicle makers that are advancing," said Zhao Fei, general manager of China Changan Automobile. "The entire industrial chain and supply chain are progressing together - batteries, motors, electronic controls, chips, software, and AI. Everyone is moving forward in tandem."

Moving forward together has led to transformations in quality, efficiency, and driving force.

This is a complete, vibrant, and rapidly evolving new model of industrial development - a systemic leap, an open and cross-sector integration, and a symbiotic collective rise.

There is no doubt that the collective vitality generated by this new model has transformed Chinese automotive brands from industry "followers" into industry "definers."

SOURCE Global Times