XPeng is preparing to sell its technology to foreign automakers beyond existing partner and shareholder Volkswagen, seeking higher-margin revenue streams, Reuters reported on Thursday, citing two people familiar with the matter.
The Guangzhou-based brand has been in contact with potential partners that have expressed interest in its technology, one of the sources said.
XPeng plans to offer its electrical and electronic architecture, cockpit systems, Turing AI chips and advanced-driver assistance software.
Potential partners could include foreign software developers and automobile suppliers alongside automakers, the source added.
The plans widen an ambition XPeng has signalled before. In June 2025, the company said it expected carmakers beyond Volkswagen to adopt its Turing chips.
Dedicated Team
XPeng established a strategic commercialisation team about six months ago to explore new technology partnerships and commercial opportunities, building on the experience gained through its alliance with Volkswagen, according to the sources.
Volkswagen bought a 4.99% stake in XPeng for about $700 million (4.71 billion yuan) in July 2023.
The alliance covers EV platforms, software and electronic architecture. But the joint development phase of that architecture has ended, Volkswagen staff told Reuters in February, with the German automaker now making software integration decisions on its own.
The first jointly developed model, the ID.UNYX 08 electric SUV, incorporates XPeng’s cockpit systems, smart-driving technology and Turing AI chips.
Series production began in March, 24 months after the two companies signed their master agreement on platform and software collaboration in February 2024.
The second jointly developed model, the ID.UNYX 09 sedan, entered China’s regulatory catalogue in July ahead of a launch in the second half.
The partnership has already emerged as a meaningful revenue source.
While vehicle sales revenue was little changed in the second quarter and vehicle margin narrowed to 12.1% from 14.3% a year earlier, revenue from services and other businesses nearly doubled, lifting the segment’s margin to 75.1% from 53.6%.
On a post-earnings call in late August, management attributed the increase mainly to technology research and development services provided under the Volkswagen partnership, as well as higher revenue from components and accessories sales.
Bernstein analyst Eunice Lee estimated that about 1.2 billion yuan ($178.9 million) of second-quarter services revenue came from Volkswagen, representing 44.4% of the segment’s 2.70 billion yuan ($402.6 million) total.
From Cars to Robots
XPeng’s ambitions extend well beyond vehicle technology.
The company is also preparing to license and customize its systems for robotaxi, robotics and other physical AI applications, the second source said.
The offering would include the operational deployment of XPeng’s robotaxis.
Founder and CEO He Xiaopeng has said humanoid robots could eventually generate significantly higher margins than vehicles.
XPeng’s general-purpose humanoid robot, IRON, walked off production lines in Guangzhou earlier this month as the company moves toward mass production by year-end.
The robotics unit, Dogotix, raised more than $900 million in late August at an implied post-money valuation above $6.3 billion.
XPeng plans to begin commercial deliveries in China and overseas markets in 2027, starting with retail sales assistant roles in its own stores.
He Xiaopeng assumed the role of Chief Executive of the robotics division in June while continuing to lead the group, describing a shift from an intelligent car company to a physical AI company.
Speaking at an internal meeting in late May, he compared the robotics unit’s current stage to where XPeng’s car business stood eight years ago, around the time of its first mass-produced vehicle.
Exports Accelerate
The tech licensing push comes as XPeng simultaneously accelerates its international vehicle expansion.
Cumulative overseas sales surpassed 100,000 vehicles since the company first entered Norway in 2020.
Exports reached about 49,400 units in the first eight months of 2026, already surpassing the 45,008 shipped in all of 2025. XPeng aims to double overseas shipments from 2025 levels, implying a 2026 target above 90,000 units.
Europe is the core of that push, with 290 of the company’s 380 overseas stores spread across 28 countries.
Germany emerged as XPeng’s largest international market by the end of August, with 5,773 vehicles registered in the first eight months — a 258% increase.
Israel, Norway and Denmark have each surpassed 10,000 cumulative deliveries.
XPeng assembles part of its European lineup at Magna Steyr’s plant in Graz, Austria — covering the G6, G9 and P7+ — allowing it to bypass EU tariffs on China-built EVs. A fourth model is due to be added at the plant.
The G9L SUV, unveiled in Beijing on Thursday, will make its international debut at the Paris Motor Show next month and become the fourth model built at the Austrian facility.
XPeng also recently started right-hand-drive G9L production in Guangzhou, with Australia as the first destination.
Expansion abroad is gaining urgency as domestic sales contract. Excluding exports, XPeng delivered an estimated 134,378 vehicles in China through the first half of 2026, down 24.7% from 178,488 in the same period a year earlier.
Overseas shipments accounted for 19.0% of total deliveries in the January–June period, up from 9.5%.
XPeng also plans to bring its FSD-rival VLA assisted driving technology to Europe in early 2027, after testing the system on public roads in Munich in July.
The vision-only architecture, which forgoes lidar and high-definition maps, mirrors the approach Tesla has pursued with its Full Self-Driving software.
XPeng reported second-quarter revenue of 19.74 billion yuan ($2.93 billion). The company remained loss-making in both the first and second quarters of 2026.
