EV manufacturer Zhejiang Leapmotor Technology Co., which uses chips from Qualcomm and Nvidia Corp., said it will be able to upgrade the flow of advanced U.S. chips to China.
While most semiconductors currently used in the automotive industry have not yet faced U.S. export restrictions, China’s growing technological strength has attracted attention from Washington, where the White House tries to limit the flow of chips to its geopolitical rivals. According to Bloomberg News, President Donald Trump’s administration is now outlining stricter semiconductor currencies and forcing key allies to escalate their restrictions on China’s chip industry.
“It doesn’t even make sense,” LeapMotor co-president Michael Wu said in an interview with Bloomberg TV on Monday. Given that restrictions could encourage China to develop its domestic technology faster. He said that while his prediction that Chip Curbs would hit the EV department is slim, LeapMotor will be “fully ready in one way or another”.
Although the EV sector has so far escaped the significant impact of chip curbs, the industry is at the forefront and center of trade tensions between Europe and China. The EU imposed huge tariffs on electric vehicles made in China, prompting many companies to consider strengthening their presence in the region.
Wu confirmed that Chinese media reports said that LeapMotor is exploring the potential of working with Ferrari NV after CEO Benedetto Vigna visited Leapmotor’s Hangzhou headquarters in February. “We did have a good interaction,” Wu said, although he said the discussion was still preliminary.
LeapMotor’s largest partnership is a joint venture with Stellantis NV, which will sell LeapMotor Cars globally using its international sales and distribution network as well as European production facilities.
The relationship Wu described has not changed since Stellantis CEO Carlos Tavares resigned. Wu said Chairman John Elkann visited LeapMotor in February, and the two companies are launching cars in Europe, South America, the Middle East, Africa and Asia.
The company hopes to close the gap with top autonomous drivers such as Telsa Inc. and Xpeng Inc., and Wu says LeapMotor will raise the standard of advanced driver assist capabilities in its vehicles in May. The company recently launched a B10 electric running car equipped with a new driver assistance platform to target the mass market.
According to Wu, LeapMotor can achieve full-year profitability through its scale and cost management. It made its first profit in the fourth quarter, with its full-year losses shrinking by 33% to RMB 2.82 billion.
With the assistance of Rebecca Choong Wilkins and Annabelle Droulers.
This article was generated from the Automation News Agency feed without the text being modified.
