Xpeng recently hosted its 2025 AI Day, showcasing a wide range of innovations poised to reshape the future of transportation and robotics. The event highlighted the company’s aggressive expansion into autonomous driving, personal air mobility, and humanoid robotics, with Volkswagen confirmed as a key strategic partner. These advancements signify Xpeng’s ambition to become a global leader in integrated physical AI technologies.
Next-Generation AI Platform & Autonomous Driving Capabilities
At the heart of Xpeng’s strategy is its second-generation VLA (Vision-Language-Action) system, an open-source AI platform designed to be the computational foundation for various applications, including vehicles, Robo cars, Robotaxi systems, modular flying cars, and robotics. Operating on Alibaba Cloud’s expansive computing infrastructure – currently with 30,000 GPUs and planned to reach 50,000–100,000 – VLA 2.0 employs a massive 720-billion-parameter architecture and undergoes full-chain updates every five days.
A significant breakthrough is the introduction of a navigation-free assisted driving mode. This feature, compliant with international legal frameworks, allows vehicles to operate without preloaded route data – a critical step towards truly global autonomous driving. Pilot rollout is slated for December 2025, with full deployment expected in the first quarter of 2026 for Xpeng’s high-end models, the P7 Ultra and G9 Ultra. Reports suggest the “small road NGP” function has improved performance on complex roads by as much as 13 times compared to the previous version.
Volkswagen Partnership and Turing AI Chip
Volkswagen’s confirmation as Xpeng’s first strategic customer for VLA 2.0 marks a pivotal moment. Furthermore, Xpeng’s self-developed Turing AI chip has been selected for use in Volkswagen vehicles, representing the sixth collaboration between the two automotive giants – following previous work on electrical architecture and ultra-fast charging networks. This demonstrates the growing recognition of Xpeng’s technological prowess within the automotive industry.
Robotics and the Rise of the Humanoid Robot – Iron
Beyond autonomous vehicles, Xpeng unveiled its new-generation Iron humanoid robot. Designed for commercialization, the Iron robot features exceptionally natural and fluid movements thanks to its highly articulated body (22 degrees of freedom in its hands), biomimetic spine and muscles, and a 3D curved head display enabling interactive communication. It’s powered by three Turing AI chips and Xpeng’s VLA system, delivering 2,250 TOPS for advanced dialogue, walking, and interaction. The use of an all-solid-state battery ensures lightweight and safe operation, while active safety and privacy protections are integrated. Large-scale production is planned for the end of 2026, and an SDK will be open to global developers, fostering a vibrant humanoid robot ecosystem.
Flying Cars: Towards Personal Air Mobility
Xpeng Aridge presented the A868 modular tilt-rotor flying car, capable of carrying six passengers over a range of 500 km at speeds exceeding 360 km/h. With vertical takeoff capabilities, the A868 eliminates the need for runways. As part of its strategy, Xpeng Aridge aims to develop two systems: personal low-altitude flight experiences for mass production in 2026 and the A868 for longer multi-passenger trips. The company has also introduced the industry’s first flying car-specific license and one-on-one professional training, designed for intuitive control using a single display and control stick.
Expanding Infrastructure and Future Plans
Xpeng is aggressively expanding its infrastructure to support these ambitious goals. The company’s new headquarters and intelligent manufacturing facility in Guangzhou will open in December, featuring multi-level automated parking and showcasing Xpeng’s innovations. The company is also extending its presence nationwide, opening offices in key cities including Beijing, Shanghai, Wuhan, and Shenzhen, in preparation for large-scale production of robots, robo cars, Robotaxis, and flying vehicles. Xpeng’s vision is clear: to become a global leader in embodied intelligence, seamlessly integrating advanced physical AI technologies across mobility and robotics platforms. The innovations showcased at the AI Day demonstrate a significant step towards realizing this ambition
