China EVs & More

In Episode 236, Tu and Lei deliver one of their most wide-ranging and revealing conversations yet—covering Tesla’s strategic retreat from cars, China’s accelerating dominance in EVs, autonomy, and robotics, and unveiling the inaugural China EVs & More Awards - the EVies
The episode opens with Tesla’s bombshell earnings call: the Model S and Model X are effectively retired, revenues decline for a second straight year, yet the stock rallies on promises of robotaxis, robotics, and AI abundance. Tu and Lei explain why Wall Street is betting on a future Tesla that is no longer a car company—and why China’s crowded robotaxi and robotics markets make that future far less certain than investors believe.
They contrast Tesla’s promises with reality on the ground in China, where BYD, NIO, XPeng, Huawei, Geely, and Xiaomi are rapidly upgrading ADAS, launching new models, and redefining value. The discussion highlights how Western media is only now “discovering” vehicles like the Xiaomi SU7 and YU7, despite Chinese OEMs offering Model 3/Y-level features at half the price.
The second half of the episode introduces the China EVs & More Awards, recognizing the companies, products, and people that defined the year—while exposing who fell behind. From Zombie Company of the Year to EV of the Year, the awards spark debate around survival, execution, and scale in the world’s most competitive auto market.
The episode closes with a sober look at automation, delivery, labor displacement, and UBI, asking whether autonomy will ultimately create abundance—or social shock—across global mobility systems.
Insightful, provocative, and data-driven, this episode explains why China EV Inc. is no longer the future—it’s the present.
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🔑 SEO-Friendly Keywords (for description / Apple Podcasts)
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⏱️ Chapter Timestamps (for YouTube description)
00:00 – Welcome & episode overview
01:10 – Tesla earnings shock: Model S & X phased out
03:00 – Tesla as a holding company, not a car company
05:20 – Why Wall Street still rewards Tesla
07:00 – FSD approval in China: promise vs reality
09:00 – China ADAS arms race: BYD, NIO, Huawei, XPeng
11:00 – Western media “discovers” Xiaomi EVs
13:00 – Why Chinese EV features cost half as much
15:10 – Robotaxis: Waymo vs Tesla vs China
17:00 – China EVs & More Awards intro
18:15 – Zombie Company of the Year: WM Motor
19:50 – Who Dis Award: Dreame
22:30 – Tech That Matters: Momenta
25:00 – Company That Needs a Hug: Porsche
27:20 – Flop of the Year: Li Auto i8
29:40 – Dark Horse of the Year: Leapmotor
32:10 – Comeback Kid: NIO ES8
35:00 – Executive of the Year: Zhu Jiangming (Leapmotor)
36:30 – Luxury Car of the Year: Aito M9
38:30 – MPV of the Year: Buick GL8
40:00 – SUV of the Year: Xiaomi YU7
41:40 – EV of the Year: Geely Xingyuan
44:00 – Automation, delivery & labor disruption
47:00 – UBI, AI abundance & social impact
49:00 – Final thoughts & call for audience input

In Episode 235, Tu and Lei break down a pivotal week for autonomous driving, global EV competition, and the future of premium automakers—from Silicon Valley to China and Europe.  
The conversation opens with a surge of AV and robotaxi news: Tesla removing safety drivers in Austin, shifting FSD to a subscription model, and signaling potential approval in China and Europe; Waymo expanding into Miami; DiDi launching a new robotaxi platform in China; and large-scale robo-van ambitions from Mobileye–Volkswagen and Geely’s Caocao Mobility. Together, these moves signal that autonomy is no longer experimental—it’s scaling.
Tu frames autonomy through four lenses: technology readiness, silicon and cloud stacks, regulatory approval, and societal impact, including job displacement and cost reduction through scale. While Tesla remains the benchmark, Chinese players like XPeng, Huawei, and Baidu are rapidly closing the gap—supported by a more permissive regulatory environment in China.
The episode then pivots to a blunt assessment of the premium auto sector. Porsche’s collapse to ~42,000 units in China, deep price cuts from BMW and Mercedes, and the stark comparison between Porsche’s Macan EV and Xiaomi’s YU7 highlight how “premium” is being redefined by software, features, and price—not heritage.
Tu and Lei argue that the high-margin glory days for German luxury brands are over, not just in China but globally, as Chinese OEMs demonstrate faster iteration, lower costs, and mass-market appeal—especially to younger and female buyers. The discussion closes with battery swapping (BAAS), cold-weather EV realities, and whether Chinese automakers could realistically build trust and scale in North America.
Strategic, candid, and forward-looking, this episode explains why autonomy and affordability—not badges—will define the next era of the auto industry.
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🔑 SEO-Friendly Keywords (for description / Apple Podcasts)
China EVs & More, Tu Le, Lei Xing, Sino Auto Insights, autonomous vehicles 2026, robotaxi expansion, Tesla FSD subscription, Tesla autonomy China Europe, Waymo Miami, DiDi robotaxi, Mobileye Volkswagen robovan, Geely Caocao Mobility, XPeng autonomous driving, Baidu Apollo, AV regulation China, L3 L4 autonomy, Porsche China sales collapse, BMW China price cuts, Mercedes China sales, Xiaomi YU7, Porsche Macan EV China, premium EV market China, affordable EVs, battery swapping BAAS, NIO battery swap, future of mobility
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⏱️ Chapter Timestamps (for YouTube description)
00:00 – Welcome & episode overview
02:20 – January slowdown in China EV sales explained
02:45 – Tesla autonomy headlines & safety driver removal
04:10 – FSD approval talk in China & Europe
05:25 – Cannonball Run: Tesla zero-intervention drive
06:45 – Framing autonomy: tech, policy, jobs & scale
09:30 – Robotaxi expansion: Waymo, DiDi & China vs US
10:50 – Robo-vans at scale: Mobileye–VW & Geely plans
12:30 – Regulation: why China is moving faster on L3/L4
14:15 – Tesla vs Chinese AV players: closing the gap
16:10 – Porsche’s collapse in China
17:45 – Are the best days over for BMW, Mercedes & Audi?
18:30 – Macan EV vs Xiaomi YU7: a brutal comparison
20:30 – How China is redefining “premium”
22:15 – Renault’s China R&D model as a blueprint
24:00 – Pricing traps: halo cars & product cannibalization
26:00 – Volkswagen ID.ERA 9X and pricing pressure
28:00 – Margin compression & operating like a startup
30:15 – Cadillac, GM & Chinese tech partnerships
31:50 – Battery swapping & cold-weather EV realities
34:30 – BAAS in North America: why it’s hard
37:00 – Can Chinese brands win trust in the West?
39:30 – Audience Q&A
42:00 – Final thoughts & what’s n

Episode 234 may go down as one of the most consequential conversations yet on China EVs & More. Tu and Lei unpack the Canada–China trade truce that effectively opens the door for Chinese EV imports into North America—and why this moment could trigger a chain reaction across the U.S., Mexico, and global auto markets.  
Canada’s decision to allow up to 49,000 Chinese EVs at just 6.1% tariffs isn’t about volume—it’s about symbolism. Once the door opens, it rarely closes. The hosts explain why this move pressures the U.S. ahead of USMCA renegotiations, accelerates conversations around Chinese manufacturing in Canada, and raises the stakes for GM, Ford, and the German luxury brands already losing ground in China.
The episode also breaks down 2025 China auto and NEV sales, showing a maturing but brutally competitive market where growth now comes from stealing share, not market expansion. With BYD, Geely, Chery, Leapmotor, and Huawei-backed brands targeting aggressive 2026 volumes, the pressure on legacy OEMs—especially BMW, Mercedes, Audi, and Porsche—has never been higher.
Tu and Lei debate which Chinese OEMs are best positioned for Canada and eventually the U.S., why affordable EVs in the $30–40K range are the real battleground, and how price cuts of 10–25% by German brands reveal structural inefficiencies long masked by premium margins.
Strategic, provocative, and deeply grounded in real data, this episode explains why North America just entered a new phase of the China EV story—and why the next 12–18 months may redefine the global auto industry.
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🔑 SEO-Friendly Keywords (for description / Apple Podcasts)
China EVs & More, Tu Le, Lei Xing, Sino Auto Insights, Canada China EV trade deal, Chinese EVs Canada, Canada EV tariffs, USMCA renegotiation, Chinese automakers North America, BYD Canada, Geely North America, Chery EVs, Great Wall Motor EV, China auto sales 2025, China NEV sales, EV price war China, BMW China sales decline, Mercedes China sales, Porsche China collapse, affordable EVs North America, $30,000 EV, EV market maturity China, global auto competition, Chinese EV manufacturing Canada
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⏱️ Chapter Timestamps (for YouTube description)

00:00 – Welcome & episode overview
01:30 – Personal EV ownership pain: Hyundai IONIQ 5 breakdown story
05:55 – Breaking news: Canada–China EV trade truce explained
07:40 – Why 49,000 EVs matters more symbolically than numerically
09:30 – What this means for the U.S. & USMCA negotiations
11:30 – Could Chinese automakers build in Canada next?
13:45 – Which Chinese OEMs are best positioned for North America
16:10 – Canada vs U.S. consumer demand & EV affordability
18:50 – 2025 China auto & NEV sales breakdown
21:30 – A maturing market: growth vs market-share battles
24:10 – BYD, Geely, Chery & Leapmotor’s 2026 ambitions
27:10 – German automakers’ reckoning in China
30:20 – BMW & Mercedes price cuts expose margin pressure
33:15 – Porsche’s dramatic collapse in China
35:50 – Flagship EVs eating into German luxury sedans
38:20 – Why affordable EVs are the real global battleground
41:10 – Chinese speed vs legacy inefficiency
44:30 – Audience Q&A: unions, manufacturing & homologation
48:00 – Can Chinese EVs be driven into the U.S. from Canada?
51:30 – Final thoughts & what to watch next

Kicking off 2026, Tu and Lei return from CES in Las Vegas with firsthand insights into how the global auto industry’s center of gravity continues to shift toward China, AI, autonomy, and robotics.  
This episode unpacks why CES is no longer about cars, but about who controls the software, silicon, sensors, and robots that will define the next decade of mobility. From Geely and Great Wall’s growing U.S. ambitions, to Hyundai’s robot-only keynote, to Ford’s quiet but meaningful autonomy reset, the hosts connect dots that most headlines missed.
Tu and Lei also break down the Geely “coming to the U.S.” scoop, Rivian-style AI days spreading to legacy OEMs, and why Western automakers are increasingly borrowing from China’s playbook—from ADAS and silicon strategy to embodied AI and robotics.
The episode closes with a deep dive into autonomy’s three tracks (L2++, consumer L3/L4, and robotaxis), the growing importance of LiDAR scale, and why Donut Labs’ solid-state battery and in-wheel motor reveal could become a true industry disruptor—if it scales.
Fast, candid, and packed with on-the-ground context, this episode explains why CES 2026 marked a turning point—and why the race is no longer just EVs vs ICE, but ecosystems vs incumbents.
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In this episode, Tu and Lei dive into a week dominated by autonomy, AI, and a widening gap between China’s EV ecosystem and the rest of the world.  
The episode opens with a deep reaction to Rivian’s Autonomy AI Day—why it felt like déjà vu for anyone following China’s smart-EV space, and how Rivian’s announcements mirror what Chinese players like XPeng, NIO, and Li Auto have already been deploying. The hosts debate whether Rivian’s approach represents real leadership or simply entry into the top tier.
From there, the conversation expands to L4 autonomy momentum: WeRide launching passenger rides with Uber in Dubai, Mercedes partnering with Momenta in Abu Dhabi, and Waymo accelerating multi-city deployments while publishing safety data others still keep opaque.
Tu and Lei also tackle the LiDAR vs. vision debate, Volkswagen’s unusual dual bet on Rivian (US) and XPeng (China), and why silicon strategy—not just batteries—will decide winners. The discussion closes with affordability: why 300-mile EVs under $40K are existential for Western OEMs, and why China’s cost structure makes that challenge unavoidable heading into 2026.
Candid, comparative, and forward-looking, this episode explains why autonomy and AI—not just electrification—will define the next phase of the global auto industry.
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