Elon Musk, the CEO of Tesla, arrived in Beijing this Sunday amid expectations that he will promote the company’s autonomous driving technology in China, a crucial automotive market where competition with local electric vehicle manufacturers is intensifying.
According to sources cited today by the Hong Kong newspaper South China Morning Post, Musk’s agenda and detailed itinerary for the visit have not yet been made public, but several local media outlets showed videos throughout the day of Musk’s private plane landing in the capital of the giant Asian country.
Musk’s visit coincides with the 18th Beijing International Automotive Exhibition, which runs from April 25 to May 4 and brings together more than 1,500 exhibitors.
At this event, major automakers showcase their latest electric vehicles, with 278 new models of new energy vehicles set to be unveiled.
In a recent tweet, Musk expressed the possibility of offering Chinese customers the option of autopilot and supervised autonomous driving from Tesla in the near future.
This statement generated interest in the sector, as China has seen an increase in the adoption of advanced driver assistance systems and autonomous driving features in mass-produced cars.
Musk’s last visit to China took place in June 2023, where he met with three Chinese government ministers, sparking widespread attention on the country’s social media.
In 2019, Tesla opened its first gigafactory outside the United States in the metropolis of Shanghai, from which more than 710,000 vehicles were produced in 2022, accounting for just over half of its global sales, according to the official newspaper Global Times.
The company, a leader in the high-end EV segment in China, delivered 603,664 Model 3 and Model Y vehicles manufactured at its gigafactory to buyers in China last year, a 37.3% increase from 2022.
To maintain its dominant position, the company has lowered the prices of its vehicles manufactured in the eastern metropolis by up to 6%.
In April of last year, the brand announced that it will open a new factory in Shanghai to produce its “Megapack,” energy storage batteries used to stabilize power grids and prevent supply cuts.
This new Tesla plant in Shanghai will have a production capacity of about 10,000 units of the mentioned product each year, as revealed by the company.
