Industry dynamics

Xpeng's head of auto tech center departs

Publishtime:2019/08/16 Views:9

The head of Xpeng's automotive technology center, Jiao Qingchun, was the project leader for Xpeng's new H platform, of which the X9 MPV is the first model.

The head of Xpeng's (NYSE: XPEV) automotive technology center has left the company, as the electric vehicle (EV) maker's team shakeup continues.

Xpeng's vice president and head of the company's automotive technology center, Jiao Qingchun, no longer holds any position at the company, the Chinese-language website of local media outlet Global Times said in a July 6 report, citing the EV maker.

Xpeng's confirmation follows reports that Jiao left the company in early July, the report noted.

Xpeng thanked Jiao for the contributions he brought to the company in terms of product technology and team leadership, and emphasized that it is ready in terms of organizational structure with a successor who has years of experience in technical expertise, according to the report.

Jiao has been in charge of the automotive technology center at Xpeng and is also the project leader for the company's new H platform, according to Global Times.

The Xpeng X9 MPV (multi-purpose vehicle), which Xpeng launched earlier this year, is based on the new platform and is the only production model currently on sale from the platform, the report said.

After Jiao's departure, the H platform will be led by Li Yifan, head of the E platform, and Yu Peng, head of the embedded development department under the Xpeng automotive technology center, will take over as head of the technology center, according to the report.

Over the past year, Xpeng has gone through several organizational changes involving multiple departments.

In August 2023, Xpeng's head of autonomous driving, Wu Xinzhou, left the company and joined Nvidia. Following Wu's departure, several executives, including Wang Tao, Xpeng's North American head of visual perception, left, the Global Times report noted.

On June 21, a report by local media outlet 36kr also mentioned Wang's departure and said that Yishu Lin, the North American head of Xpeng's smart driving team, had left the company.

A day before the report of Jiao's departure, Xpeng's local peer Nio (NYSE: NIO) announced that Steven Feng had resigned as CFO for personal and family reasons, and that his position had been taken over by senior vice president of finance Stanley Qu.

Xpeng delivered 10,668 vehicles in June, up 23.76 percent year-on-year and up 5.14 percent from May, according to data released on July 1.

In the second quarter, Xpeng delivered 30,207 vehicles, up 30.17 percent year-on-year and up 38.43 percent from the first quarter, according to data compiled by CnEVPost.

Deliveries for the quarter fell within the guidance range of between 29,000 and 32,000 vehicles provided by Xpeng on May 21.

Xpeng's smart driving team reshuffle continues with departure of North American head, report says