XPENG (XPENG Motors / Xiaopeng Motors) is a Chinese AI-driven mobility company, best known for its smart electric cars. Founded in 2014 and based in Guangzhou, it builds software-rich EVs and develops its own assisted-driving technology and in-car operating system.
Jump to: What XPENG is · History · Models · Software · Who leads XPENG · Global footprint · Beyond cars · Q&A
What XPENG is
In its own words, XPENG is an AI mobility company building Smart EVs for tech-minded drivers, and it counts the software, the assisted driving, and the platforms underneath as part of the product.
- Vehicles - passenger EVs and related platforms under the XPENG brand
- Software built in-house - assisted driving and the XOS in-car operating system
- Core vehicle systems - powertrain and electrical/electronic architecture developed internally
- A wider footprint - offices in Beijing, Shanghai, Silicon Valley, Munich, and Amsterdam, with Smart EVs built mainly at the plants in Zhaoqing and Guangzhou, Guangdong. Full offices, plants, and sales markets: Markets
XPENG is listed on the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE: XPEV) and the Hong Kong Exchange (HKEX: 9868). For listing context and links, see Stocks.
History
XPENG carries its chairman’s name. He Xiaopeng funded the company in 2014 and two GAC engineers, Xia Heng and He Tao, built it; he took charge himself three years later. Twelve years on, XPENG makes its own AI chip, runs a humanoid robot on its production line, and owns an affiliate that flies people. The steps in between explain most of what an owner sees in the car today. Model-by-model chronology: Lineup history.
- 2014 - Three founders start out: GAC engineers Xia Heng and He Tao run the build, while He Xiaopeng puts up the money after selling his internet firm UCWeb to Alibaba
- 2017 - He Xiaopeng leaves Alibaba in August and takes the chairman’s seat; the first XPENG car rolls off a contract production line in Zhengzhou
- 2018 - G3 SUV, the first Smart EV under the XPENG name, reaches customers
- 2020-2021 - P7 sedan sets a domestic range record; dual listing (NYSE XPEV, then HKEX 9868); first European deliveries (Norway)
- 2023 - Wang Fengying joins as President; technology partnership with Volkswagen Group
- 2024 - The IRON humanoid robot debuts, and AeroHT unveils the Land Aircraft Carrier at a price cap of 2 million yuan
- 2025-2026 - Physical AI becomes the public north star: an in-house Turing AI chip as the compute base, VLA 2.0 as the foundation model for assisted driving / autonomy, and Robotaxi on a China trial path through 2026, with Europe NGP on VLA 2.0 pointed at early 2027
Models
Europe gets a handful of models. China gets more, and a few of those matter here anyway, because they carry the platforms and technology that reach European cars later.
In Europe
- XPENG G9L - the New Tech Flagship above the G9; European premiere at the Paris Motor Show in October 2026
- XPENG L03
- XPENG X9 - the seven-seat MPV, on sale in seven European markets since June 2026, but not in Denmark
- XPENG P7+
- XPENG G6
- XPENG G9 · G9 differences
- XPENG P7 - the first XPENG sedan in Europe, from Norway in 2021; production ended in 2025
Beyond the European showroom
- XPENG GX - China flagship SUV on the same new architecture family as the L03; useful when you want the wider platform picture
- XPENG Robotaxi - the L4 fleet cars, built as a GX variant
- XPENG New P7 - internal code E29, the third car to carry the P7 name, China-only and with no announced European plans
China has carried more nameplates than these - the G3, the P5, the Mona M03, the G7 - and Lineup history lists them against the internal development codes XPENG uses in-house.
More on the site: Compare specs · Registrations · the full Lineup hub.
Names, equipment, and availability still follow the local market - the importer or store remains the best check for what is sold where you live.
Software & assisted driving
- XOS - the in-car operating system; releases and changelogs live under Software and XOS Releases
- XPENG App - the phone companion for remote and ownership features (App hub · v3 guide)
- Assisted driving - ADAS and NGP-class features developed in-house; what you get depends on model, market, and software version
Day-to-day owner how-tos - dashcam, digital key, OTA, settings, and more - live under Guides.
Who leads XPENG
Three people shape how XPENG shows up in public: the co-founder whose name is on the cars, the president who came from Great Wall to fix the commercial side, and the vice chairman who speaks for the company abroad.
He Xiaopeng
Chairman & CEO - co-founder who funded XPENG in 2014; left Alibaba in 2017 to run it, and is the voice behind the Physical AI direction.
Wang Fengying
President - joined in 2023 after decades at Great Wall Motor; owns product planning, the lineup, and sales.
Brian Gu
Vice Chairman & President - strategy, capital, and XPENG’s push into markets outside China.
Global footprint & Europe
At Brand Day in Munich on 16 July 2026, XPENG put numbers on its reach outside China:
- Presence in 65 countries and regions
- 1.2 million cumulative AI-car deliveries
- European manufacturing via the XPENG Magna plant in Austria, plus an R&D centre in Munich
- A Europe-facing line: “In Europe, For Europe”
- Robotaxi in Europe - on stage: “We invite European partners to shape the future of mobility with us, here in Europe.”
- Continued work on charging infrastructure in Europe
Beyond cars
- Robotaxi - the first Physical AI product in XPENG’s framing, with China trial and small-scale routine services targeted before the end of 2026. XPENG wants to supply the toolkit and let regional operators run the local service, which is why the company keeps talking about partners rather than fleets of its own. Detail: Robotaxi.
- IRON - the humanoid robot. It works on the P7+ assembly line in Guangzhou, which makes XPENG one of the few carmakers using its own robot in its own factory.
- Aridge (formerly AeroHT) - the aviation affiliate behind the Land Aircraft Carrier, a six-wheeled van that carries a detachable two-seat aircraft in the back. Its Guangzhou plant rolled the first flying module off the line in November 2025 and is laid out for 10,000 units a year, with deliveries aimed at 2026.
Q&A
Related on this site
XPENG hub · Markets · Stocks · Visiting XPENG · Videos
Sources & editorial note
- Company framing paraphrased from XPENG’s press “About XPENG” text (as of July 2026).
- Leadership titles and portraits from xpeng.com/brand (Core Management Team).
- Selected scale and Europe figures from XPENG Brand Day, Munich, 16 July 2026.
- Early-history details from XPENG’s HKEX listing document and public reporting. The listing document names Xiaopeng He, Heng Xia and Tao He as the founders; XPENG’s own December 2017 press release describes He Xiaopeng switching “from an investor and a co-founder” to chairman.
- Aridge plant figures (first flying module 3 November 2025, 120,000 m², 10,000 units a year) from Aridge’s own announcement as reported by CnEVPost, Gasgoo, and Global Times.
- Physical AI / Turing / VLA 2.0 framing paraphrased from XPENG public materials and He Xiaopeng essays (2025-2026), plus Robotaxi pages on this site.
- Robotaxi positioning paraphrased from He Xiaopeng on X (7 Aug 2026): toolkit provider, regional partners worldwide, China trial services before the end of 2026.
- Model, software, market, and stock pages on this site are updated on their own schedules and may move ahead of any single event deck.