XPENG(US:XPEV) Hua Er Jie Jian Wen·2025-12-16 08:55Core Insights - Xiaopeng Motors has become the third domestic company to obtain an L3 autonomous driving road test license in China, marking a significant step towards commercial application of L3 autonomous driving technology [2][3] Group 1: License Acquisition and Testing - On December 16, Xiaopeng Motors announced it has received an L3 autonomous driving road test license in Guangzhou, enabling regular L3 road testing on designated high-speed roads [2][3] - The L3 license allows vehicles to operate independently in specific environments, contrasting with L2, which requires constant driver supervision [3] - Xiaopeng Motors is now positioned alongside Changan and BYD, who have also received similar testing qualifications [3] Group 2: Technological Advancements - Xiaopeng Motors aims for L4 level autonomous driving, with plans to launch vehicles equipped with L4 capabilities by 2026 [4] - The second-generation VLA software, expected to be mass-produced in Q1 2026, will feature a novel architecture that eliminates the "language translation" step, allowing direct generation of action commands from visual signals [4] - From Q3 2025, Xiaopeng's Ultra models will incorporate three self-developed Turing AI chips, achieving a computing power of 2250 TOPS [4] Group 3: Competitive Landscape - The competition between Xiaopeng and Tesla is intensifying, with Xiaopeng's founder, He Xiaopeng, publicly challenging Tesla's FSD capabilities [5][6] - He Xiaopeng has acknowledged that while the first version of Xiaopeng's VLA does not fully match Tesla's FSD V14.2, the upcoming VLA 2.0 is expected to significantly improve performance [6] Group 4: Market Outlook - The next decade is anticipated to be pivotal for L3 autonomous vehicles, with expectations of broader L4 applications [7] - The penetration rate of advanced driver-assistance systems (ADAS) is projected to exceed 40% by 2026, driven by the increasing adoption of high-end domestic chips [7] - As of the first nine months of 2025, the penetration rate for L2++ and above advanced driving assistance systems reached 25.01% [7]