Gasgoo Daily: German Chancellor Visits Hangzhou, Engages with Chinese Firms Including Leapmotor

With Gasgoo Daily, we will offer daily important automotive news in China. For those we have reported, the title of the piece will include a hyperlink, which will provide detailed information.

German Chancellor Visits Hangzhou, Engages with Chinese Firms Including Leapmotor

On February 26, German Chancellor Merz visited Hangzhou, where the German delegation engaged in in-depth exchanges with several Chinese innovators, including Unitree and Leapmotor. At a welcome luncheon later that day, Leapmotor Chairman Zhu Jiangming held extensive talks with BMW Group Chairman Oliver Zipse, signaling a potential upgrade in Sino-German automotive cooperation.

NIO, Bosch deepen core EV tech alliance

On February 25, 2026, during German Chancellor Friedrich Merz's visit to China, NIO signed a strategic cooperation agreement with Bosch, underscoring deepening industrial ties between the two countries' automotive sectors.

The partnership will extend across NIO's three brands—NIO, ONVO and FIREFLY—and focus on core technologies underpinning intelligent electric vehicles. Areas of collaboration include chassis-by-wire systems and battery management, spanning braking control, steering and drive systems, as well as body electronics and perception modules. The agreement signals a move toward closer technical integration at a time when software-defined architectures and electrified platforms are reshaping vehicle development.

By formalizing the alliance, the two companies aim to accelerate joint innovation in key intelligent EV technologies while leveraging complementary strengths along the supply chain. The deal also reflects broader ambitions to elevate Sino-German cooperation in energy transition and advanced manufacturing, reinforcing industrial collaboration amid the global push for sustainable growth.

GAC Group incubates embodied AI unit in Guangzhou

At a high-profile development conference held on February 26 in Guangzhou's Huangpu District, GAC Group unveiled the fourth generation of its embodied intelligent humanoid robot, GoMate Mini, and announced the formation of a new subsidiary, Guangdong Huilun Technology. The newly established company will operate as an independent, market-driven entity, taking charge of GAC's expanding ambitions in embodied AI and robotics.

Huilun Technology will concentrate on the full lifecycle of embodied intelligent robots, spanning research and development, manufacturing, sales and after-sales services.

Under its roadmap, the company plans to begin small-batch pilot production of its core models later this year, while simultaneously deploying benchmark use cases in the security sector. Large-scale mass production is targeted for 2027, positioning GAC among a growing group of Chinese automakers leveraging their industrial foundations to enter the embodied AI race.