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On September 16, the 2026 Leapmotor Technology Day, themed on 'Confidence', took place. A set of LEAP 5.0 vehicle architectures, as well as LWM world model intelligent driving, MM-i multimodal hybrid electric drive, and CTC3.0 high-voltage-low-voltage integrated battery, three core technologies, were released on site, showcasing the results of its self-developed achievements since its establishment 11 years ago.
On the same day, Leapmotor announced that the subscription for the additional share issuance on FAW's equity investment had passed the CSRC review and completed registration. China FAW, a central state-owned enterprise, officially became a strategic shareholder holding 5%. Beyond the 3.744 billion yuan, what Leapmotor truly obtained was the credit endorsement of a central enterprise and the systematic industrial resources backed by a central enterprise group.
The day the status was finalized coincided with the day technology was complemented, which didn't seem like a coincidence. When the two parties signed the contract last December, the cooperation direction specified was the joint development of plug-in hybrids and extended-range powertrains. What Leapmotor released that day was indeed its first plug-in hybrid electric drive, the MM-i. From FAW paying platform licensing fees to Leapmotor for the Hongqi project to opening CTC3.0 patents to the entire industry, Leapmotor is taking what it has accumulated over 11 years, taking it out of its own products, and placing it on the industry's shelves.
What is Leapmotor's Confidence Actually?
The first question this technology day aims to answer is what the two words 'Confidence' refer to.
Zhu Jiangming, founder, chairman, and CEO of Leapmotor Technology, elaborated on the situation of the domestic automotive industry and new energy brands in 2026. In a stage where the industry faces challenges, Leapmotor's monthly sales reached 100,000 units and it has been profitable for three consecutive half-years, demonstrating its significance. Daring to talk about investment in a contracting market itself requires a foundation.
The first layer of the foundation is R&D density. Leapmotor has a total of 10,000 employees, with 8,500 in R&D, and Sales, HR, Finance, and Public Relations totaling 1,500 people.
The second layer is full-domain self-research and deep self-manufacturing, autonomously controlling 65% of the vehicle cost, built 18 parts factories, with a platform universality rate of 90%. However, Zhu Jiangming set a bottom line for this model: core components developed and manufactured in-house must have PPM and 3mis superior to suppliers before being released to the market. Quality must be ensured first, and cost optimization comes second. This statement directly responds to the most common external doubts regarding vertical integration: self-research is not about saving money, but about keeping quality in our own hands.
The third layer is where the true confidence lies: these technologies already have buyers. There are 5 external partnerships for electronic systems, electric drives have received designations from 8 OEMs, and battery systems have 10 external partnerships.
The strongest piece of evidence is the Hongqi G117. In March 2025, an announcement from the FAW Electronic Bidding Platform stated that the joint development of the Hongqi brand G117 vehicle and the technical procurement of platform licensing fees had a buyer: Zhejiang Leapmotor. An OEM paying platform licensing fees to another OEM is in itself a recognition of status; this speaks more to the role Leapmotor plays in the industry than any self-positioning could.
Betting on 2027
LEAP 5.0 is not prepared for existing models; it bets on a brand that hasn't been born yet.
The architecture is divided into physical and electronic layers. The physical layer enlarges the cabin simultaneously along the X, Y, and Z axes. Integrating the super air conditioning unit and swapping out the powertrain increased cabin length by 19%. The vertical layout of shock absorbers plus miniaturized shock absorber tower packages increased front legroom width by 37.5%. The flat low floor plus native integrated smart lift roof increased cabin height by 63.7%, ultimately achieving a space utilization rate of over 100%. The electronic layer is Cloverleaf 5.0, featuring 48V power for the whole vehicle, vehicle-wide Ethernet, and Vehicle-Cloud AgentOS. The central domain controller makes decisions while other domain controllers only execute, compressing the total vehicle wiring harness to within 500 meters.
Cao Li, Head of Vehicle Product Line at Leapmotor Technology, described this new species more specifically. It might replace some hotel functions, camping scenarios, and temporary rest, even offices, and leisure cafes and restaurants. The premise he emphasized is worth noting: the strongest attribute of the second brand is first solving the problem of advanced assisted driving.
This also explains why Leapmotor set a hard metric for intelligent driving. Zhu Jiangming said the goal is to achieve 100 kilometers of no-touch driving in urban areas by the end of this year.
The second brand will start debuting and delivering in the fourth quarter of 2027. Leapmotor now sells 100,000+ units monthly, with the main sales range between 100,000 and 200,000 yuan. This is a clear upward move.
A 100% utilization rate is a scenario worth contemplating. Whether it can transform from a concept at the launch event into a reason for users to pay for will have to wait until 2027 for an answer.
Pressing Intelligent Driving Down to 100,000
Leapmotor's approach to intelligent driving is the reverse of others. Others use compute power and headcount to drive prices up, while Leapmotor wants to pack the same capabilities into the entire model line.
It is sufficient to clarify three things about the characteristics of LWM world model intelligent driving: it does not rely on BEV perception, does not depend on rule-based code, and LiDAR is used only for safety redundancy. The cloud base model is responsible for learning and inference, while the vehicle-side real-time model handles decision-making. Rules only provide a fallback for traffic regulations such as traffic lights, reducing code volume by 90%. Compute power can be deployed on different platforms of 200, 640, and 1280 TOPS. The result is advanced assisted driving reaching models under 100,000 yuan, including the A10.
Zhou Hongtao, Head of Electronic Product Line at Leapmotor Technology, put forward his own viewpoint. He does not believe that intelligent driving requires throwing money and piling up personnel to be produced, on the grounds that the vast majority of peers who previously invested thousands of people are now cutting back significantly. This judgment is consistent with Leapmotor's path. Since one cannot trade headcount for progress, one must find space in algorithm efficiency.
Leapmotor has sold 350,000 LiDAR-equipped model vehicles that can be upgraded for free to the world model version and used for free for a lifetime. Among them, the earliest over 10,000 units used the Orin X platform, while Leapmotor now primarily uses the Qualcomm 8650 platform. Porting is equivalent to redeveloping an entire set of algorithms. Zhu Jiangming explained the decision-making process: those over 10,000 older users bought early when AI chips were expensive; they spent so much money to support Leapmotor, so if it was not usable after purchase, they would feel very sad. Therefore, we are willing to spend even more effort to upgrade them.
Regarding catching up to Tesla FSD, his answer was quite clever. There is no comparability with Tesla; Chinese cars cannot go to the United States, and FSD cannot easily land in China either. This is unsolvable. You can say anything, because neither can outmatch the other.
To spread the cost, intelligent driving must increase volume. Leapmotor is on the path of using scale to replace adoption. The cost of this path is slowness, but the benefit is that once it is proven, the coverage will be larger than others.
Filling the Plug-in Hybrid Gap
MM-i is not just filling a power form; from the day it was defined, it has been aimed at the overseas market.
Wu Cun, Head of Electric Drive Product Line at Leapmotor Technology, stated the positioning very directly: mainly for foreign markets. The reason is that charging facilities abroad are backward, and the hybrid market will last another 5 to 10 years or even longer. Foreign users have higher requirements for medium-to-high speed acceleration capabilities, while Toyota and Honda's iMMD are very weak at medium-to-high speeds. He gave a comparison: acceleration from 80 km/h to 120 km/h for vehicles in the same class is generally 8 seconds, while Leapmotor can achieve 4.5 seconds. The essence of new energy is not to eliminate internal combustion engines, but to decarbonize. If hybrid technology can deliver a pure electric experience while reducing carbon emissions, it is new energy technology.
However, there is a consensus among multiple domestic brands this year that hybrid models with small batteries still have a market in China, and multiple models have already started to enter the market. Leapmotor promoting them vigorously in China cannot be ruled out.
With the release of MM-i, Leapmotor has completed its full power layout covering pure electric, extended range, and plug-in hybrid, spanning from A0 to D-class. The overseas expansion line is also well-aligned; products have entered 45 countries and regions globally, with over 1,000 overseas stores, and cumulative exports over the past two years of overseas business exceed 200,000 vehicles,
Leapmotor's Exclusive Strategy
Leapmotor doesn't sell parts; it sells a complete, proven solution.
Zhu Jiangming explained the external supply model very clearly. Collaboration with FAW and Stellantis is at the platform level, sharing platforms. There are two ways to implement it: one is produced in Leapmotor's factories, and one is produced in the partners' own factories, but Leapmotor provides a packaged kit of core components including battery packs, electric drives, all controllers, lights, etc. His judgment is that this core kit saves at least 1,000 to 2,000 yuan compared to the other party selecting multiple suppliers themselves, and it is faster, has shorter commissioning time, and lower risk.
It is worth noting that Leapmotor announced opening relevant patents for high-low voltage integration to the entire industry. OEMs usually treat patents as a moat. Companies willing to open source want the industry to follow their own standards; this is already the mindset of a supplier.
Discussing the issue of overseas collaboration reflected Zhu Jiangming's vision. He stated that automobiles must pursue localization and there is also collaborative space with domestic automakers. For example, many Chinese automakers have already built factories in Thailand. Leapmotor hopes not to build factories repeatedly; it is best to use their factories to reduce duplicate investment. This aligns with the concept of systematic overseas expansion that Leapmotor has always emphasized. Rather than each building factories from scratch, it is better to utilize existing capacity.
When discussing embodied intelligent robots, Zhu Jiangming was very pragmatic. He said humanoid robots are still in a very early stage; while they can move now, there is a long growth process before they can work. Short-term, humanoids will not be the focus. He values non-humanoid, shape-shifting embodied intelligence more. The criteria for judgment are whether they can complete work and whether costs can be lower.
Sharp Perspective: Technology and Innovation are the Foundation for the Future
Quite a bit was released at this technology day; what is truly noteworthy is where they are going. One part is for the 2027 second brand, another part is sold to shareholders like FAW, and a third part is directly opened to the entire industry.
Zhu Jiangming's attitude towards competition is very straightforward. He said competition is inevitable, and only competition can drive enterprise progress, allowing consumers to buy better products for less money. However, he simultaneously raised a premise: do not compete on the internet; we must truly compete on product strength.
Three lines are laid out at the same time: FAW's equity and powertrain collaboration, Stellantis's overseas channels, and the second brand's upward move in the fourth quarter of 2027.
The challenges are also real. Zhu Jiangming's own saying is to anticipate danger in times of peace; all things are unlikely to go smoothly. The industry has entered negative growth, and the larger the scale, the greater the difficulty in taking the next step up.
Zhu Jiangming stated: "Technology and innovation are the foundation for enterprises facing the future and are also the core competitiveness."
