XPeng and Volkswagen Group expand collaboration plans to integrate MEB tech into new EVs

XPeng Motors and Volkswagen Group have announced an expansion to a recently signed partnership that pushes the collaboration from the co-development of a China-only vehicle platform to now include VW’s global MEB platform technology.

XPeng Motors ($XPEV) is one of the most prominent all-electric brands in China as it works to become a globally recognized name in autos and ADAS technology, despite growing tariffs in other markets.

Over the years, we’ve covered XPeng’s expansion of BEVs and new territories, including entry into Europe, to compete against local automakers like Volkswagen Group. Conversely, VW has met its own sets of struggles outside of Europe, including China, as it tries to go all electric.

To boost global sales going forward, Volkswagen Group enlisted the help of XPeng to co-develop a new digital EV platform to power a fresh line of models built in, and specifically for, Chinese consumers.

Signed this past April, the E/E Architecture collaboration builds upon Volkswagen Group’s purchase of about 4.99% of XPeng in July 2023 and was established to combine technologies, particularly Volkswagen’s existing China Main Platform (CMP), into the new E/E Architecture.

At the time, Volkswagen’s Modular Electric Drive Matrix (MEB) platform was not mentioned. The German automaker began developing it in 2015 and currently uses it as its leading global architecture.

Today, XPeng and Volkswagen have announced an expansion of their collaboration that will now also include technology from the MEB platform to develop at least two new all-electric models, plus the potential for additional opportunities to expand this new E/E architecture.

Volkswagen adds MEB tech to collaboration with XPeng

XPeng Motors shared details of its growing technical collaboration with Volkswagen Group today, which now includes the two new “Project Houses” in Guangzhou and Hefei for engineers from both automakers to collaborate and develop the promised E/E Architecture. Per Ralf Brandstätter, Member of the Board of Management of Volkswagen AG for China:

The rapid progress in the close cooperation between the Volkswagen Group and XPENG underlines the great potential of this partnership. With the joint development of a highly modern E/E Architecture, in which both partners contribute their technological expertise, we are now taking the next step together. For us at Volkswagen, this project is also the next milestone in the consistent implementation of our ‘in China for China’ strategy – with a clear focus on Chinese customers and technological innovations. From 2026, all all-electric vehicles of the Volkswagen brand in China will be equipped with this very powerful and efficient architecture.

According to XPeng, both parties have entered into a “Master Agreement” that builds upon their existing technical collaboration and solidifies each automaker’s commitment to “jointly develop industry-leading E/E Architecture for all locally produced vehicles based on Volkswagen’s China Main Platform (CMP) and Modular Electric Drive Matrix (MEB) platform.”

Furthermore, the Master Agreement states that both parties will explore “further collaboration opportunities” to expand the use of the pending E/E Architecture and their respective partnership.

The latest update says the first Volkswagen-branded EV on the new architecture (a mid-size SUV) is expected to begin production 24 months from now and will be followed by a second model, both of which will be sold exclusively in China.