Chinese EV maker Xpeng launched a new “AI-powered” electric SUV in Munich this week, and while the car, named L03, is impressively spec’d and undercuts Tesla and Hyundai on price, Xpeng was eager to use the Munich stage to announce it is evolving beyond being “just” a carmaker.
In fact, the entire L03 launch event was billed as a “Physical AI” event, with “Physical AI” meaning the company’s vision of combining AI powered by self-developed chips and large language models with physical embodiments like power systems, hardware and operating systems. Together, this “Physical AI” powers three applications: EVs, humanoid robots, and “flying cars.”
Xpeng has already seen success in EVs, having shipped over a million EVs in its home country, and sold over 60,000 vehicles in Europe since expanding to the continent in 2024. Today, Xpeng operates in 65 countries around the world.
At the event, Xpeng founder He Xiaopeng said even though humanoid robots and flying cars seem far-fetched, Xpeng is in fact near the mass production stage with both products. The humanoid robot, named Iron, has been making the rounds in the past year at Xpeng events domestically and at trade shows abroad.
The flying car refers to Aridge, a modular “land aircraft carrier” which includes an electric vehicle with a detachable flying module. He said the Aridge has been in development for over 13 years, and he promises it is no mere concept prototype, but something that will soon be ready for mass production.
In fact, he promised both the humanoid robot and Aridge flying car will be available in Europe in the near future. While I personally find that hard to believe, Xpeng has indeed made great strides in integrating into the European market in the last few years. The company has a dedicated R&D center in Munich. Xpeng also announced a partnership with Google Maps for vehicles shipped outside of China. This makes Xpeng the first EV maker from Asia to ship cars with Google Maps fully integrated into the vehicle’s navigation system.
As for the Xpeng L03, it’s essentially an SUV that delivers 180kW of power and achieves a WLTP range of up to 445km. Priced at €35,600, it outperforms competitors in its performance-to-price ratio.
All three products – the EV, robot, and flying car – are powered by Xpeng’s Turing chips, a self-developed silicon chip featuring 750 TOPS per chip alongside a 40-core processor.
“We are a technology company that makes cars,” said Sven De Smet, Xpeng’s head of product in Europe. “Not a car company that uses tech.”