China EVs & More

This episode starts with Tu and Lei unpacking the significance of NIO partnering with SOE Changan to expand it's swapping services. After a significant deep-dive into the NIO swapping news, Tu then asks Lei about the announcement that Stellantis will use CATL to supply them batteries for the EU market. This in addition to the recent investment that Stellantis had made in Chinese EV company LeapMotor. The conversation transitions over to the US and Tu and Lei's thoughts on how the final IRA language is going to shake out and how it may affect the automakers that manufacture inside the US which is just about all of the non-Chinese legacy automakers.Tu and Lei then get into their experience in LA, both going to Faraday Future's Investor Day and then to the LA Auto show and watching the Lucid Gravity unveil. The podcast closes out with Tu and Lei discussing the popularity of extended range electric vehicles (EREVs) 

Tu & Lei begin the podcast with an explanation of what Single's Day is in China and how some EV brands are participating, namely by launching promotions to help sell their vehicles. They both then begin to talk about Q4 and the mad dash by all the automotive players in the China market to finish out the sales year on a high note. Q4 alone can sometimes make or break a brand's annual sales. The podcast moves to a discussion on Li Auto's MEGA and XPeng's X9 MPVs and how they compare with one another and the both company's different approaches to market them. Polestar begins the next topic of conversation and it evolves into a broader discussion about Zeekr and Geely who owns both brands, specifically what Li Shufu is trying to get out of the spate of IPOs for his companies with the Zeekr still on the way.The podcast ends with a brief discussion about the mobile phone connection with EVs and then whether its the right time for a Chinese EV company to be IPO'ing in the US.

Tu and Lei begin this podcast by discussing the layoffs announced at NIO and how this could help them and why it was potentially overdue. Tu and Lei educate on what Single's Day in China is and how even EV brands have gotten in on promotions during the biggest digital commerce day in the world. Tu and Lei give a quick update on BYD sales for 2023 and posit that they are really the ONLY company that's continuing to grow it's already substantial sales in China and starting to build sales momentum ex-China. They both then take a few moments to talk about their experience at a Zeekr Track Day event they both attended just outside of New York City at the Monticello Motor Club. In addition to the Track Day, Lei also hosted a fireside chat with Ganesh Iyer, current US Head for NIO later in the week. He discusses a few notable things Ganesh had to say.The podcast closes out with a chat about what's expected to be a mad dash by all automakers to finish out 2023 with a sales bang. 

Tu and Lei start out with the big news of the week. Stellantis acquiring a stake in Chinese EV / EREV maker - LeapMotor. Tu asks Lei to give a brief history lesson of DaimlerChrysler / FCA / Stellantis.They then both dive into the transaction, giving more background about LeapMotor and the opportunities and challenges ahead for both sides. The conversation shifts over to the events happening in Beijing / Shanghai at the time of the live show hosted by Zeekr and Jiyue, one company a Geely brand and the other, Jiyue using Geely as a contract manufacturer. Lei shifts gear to discuss the latest on the UAW negotiations with the US Three. Tu goes over what is an estimate of hourly costs for a typical UAW worker. This discussion evolves into why the US is having difficulty selling EVs vs. China. The podcast closes out with the accident by a Cruise robotaxi in SF that injured a bystander. 

Tu starts with a brief update and discussion with Lei on Tesla in China and the overall slowdown in the EV space around the world. The conversation quickly moves to Bill Ford's comment about Chinese EVs 'coming to our shores' and a brief discussion on Ford's recent moves. Tu and Lei move onto discussing European brands Citroën, Peugeot and Mini and how they continue to be built in China and in Mini's case, will be built in China and exported to the rest of the world. Tu then asks Lei if he likes the recently unveiled Li Auto Mega MPV. They spend a few moments discussing the vehicle's merits. The podcast ends with Tu and Lei giving an update about the Chinese government restricting graphite for export. 

The pod starts with a brief update on the UAW & US Three situation but moves quickly over to a brief disussion about Li Auto's openly stated and ambitious goals of selling 3M vehicles in China by 2028. Tu then pushes the chat to Porsche and the struggles they may beginning to see in the China market, a market they've only seen growth in since entering in 2001. Tu and Lei move the discussion over to Great Wall Motor's Haomo.ai announcing a very inexpensive ADAS system that starts at less than ¥10K and how LiDAR and overall sensor pricing for ADAS systems will quickly move into commodity territory as Chinese providers continue to try to compete on price. Tu brings up how GM has offered to unionize its US battery facilities as a carrot in the ongoing UAW negotiations and they both talk about how the LG & BYD partnership could be used to skirt the Inflation Reduction Act restrictions. The podcast ends with Tu talking about his trip to SF and and both of them talking about WM's bankruptcy filing. 

Tu and Lei begin the podcast with a brief discussion about the double holiday being celebrated in China - National Day & Mid-Autumn Festival.Lei then transitions the discussion to September sales and it wasn't very pretty for many EV companies. Tu reminds everyone that new vehicles were just launched by some brands and that those sales vehicles sales wouldn't be reflected until Q4'23.Tu and Lei key in on XPeng and NIO to disuss their particular situations and move onto a few other surprise EV companies whose sales numbers stood out including BYD's continuous solid monthly numbers.Tu and Lei turn their attention to the US market, the current UAW situation and the low take rate that has created more EV inventory than expected for US automakers. Tu and Lei end the podcast with a discussion on the recent Cruise accident in SF and US EV startup INDI EV's bankruptcy that further complicates Foxconn's entry into the EV contract manufacturing space.

BYD surpasses Ford to become the 4th best-selling automotive brand. Misconceptions about foreign legacies entering China market. Challenges for automakers in software development. Tesla to sell vehicles online in China. Leading figures in 2024. Competition and strategies in Chinese automotive market.