Chinese smart electric vehicle startup Xpeng has announced a series of innovations that direct the company towards crafting the mobility ecosystem of the future. "Our exploration of more efficient, safer, carbon-neutral mobility solutions goes far beyond just smart EVs, and is the cornerstone of our long-term competitive advantages," said He Xiaopeng, chairman and CEO of XPeng, at the startup's 2021 Tech Day in Beijing on Sunday. "We strive to implement cutting-edge mobility technologies in mass-production models for the benefit of our customers." Xiaopeng went into detail on the company's latest versions of its advanced driver assistance system (ADAS), its supercharger network, a next-generation flying car built with HT Aero and its robotic unicorn for kids. Xpeng is planning to roll out the next generation of its ADAS to drivers in select cities during the first half of 2022. Xpilot 3.5 will feature "City Navigation Guided Pilot (NGP)" and will only be available to drivers of Xpeng's P5 family sedan, which can be built with lidar, millimeter-wave radar and a 3D visual perception network that can recognize, classify and position multiple targets – all of which is essential for city-level NGP.

China's bid to take the lead in the electric vehicle market moved up a notch with the recent office opening of Xpeng Motors in Silicon Valley. Xpeng is one of several Chinese electric vehicle producers that is vying for this expanding market, along with several potential Tesla killers, among them startup unicorn NIO. China already accounts for about half of global EV sales, boosted by the Chinese government's handouts such as a $15,000 subsidy, a free driver's license and access to many charging stations. Xpeng has a head start among dozens of Chinese EV startups given its connection to Alibaba. Co-founder He Xiaopeng, one of China's Internet tycoons, sold his browser startup to Alibaba in 2014 for $5 billion, and Alibaba backed Xpeng at $350 million with Foxconn and IDG Capital in January 2018 -- along with a who's who of venture investing including Matrix Partners, Morningside Venture Capital and GGV Capital.

Venture capital firm IDG Capital was the third lead investor in the funding, and the funds are slated for both research and production costs, Xiaopeng, also known as Xpeng, said in a release Monday. Two other Chinese internet giants, Baidu Inc. and Tencent Holdings Ltd., have led fundings of at least $2.5 billion into Chinese electric-car companies including NiO and WM Motor Technology. Beyond China, Tencent also invested $1.8 billion for a 5% stake in Tesla Inc. last March. Alibaba, Tencent and Baidu want to see their technology incorporated into cars as autonomous vehicles edge into the market, giving them captive audiences for online gaming, streaming video, internet shopping and social media, said Bill Russo, founder of Shanghai consultancy Automobility Ltd. Alibaba and Foxconn executives said in the release that Xpeng gives the company the ability to tap into the intersection of the internet, artificial intelligence and traditional manufacturing, an area with a lot of promise.