XPeng completed its fourth annual 1024 Tech Day in China today, highlighting several of its latest technological breakthroughs in electric mobility. The presentation included several advancements in autonomous driving, robotic animals, and self-evolving AI platforms. Additionally, XPeng Inc. shared that its sixth generation eVTOL – the closest thing we’ve seen to an actual flying car – completed its maiden flight. Lots to unfold here, so let’s get started.
Table of contents
Quick recap leading up to XPeng’s Tech Day 2022
XPeng Inc. ($XPEV) is a Chinese EV manufacturer founded in 2014 in Guangzhou that is made up of XPeng Motors and XPeng AeroHT, formerly known as XPeng Huitian – which specializes in Urban Air Mobility (UAM).
During last year’s 1024 Tech Day, XPeng revealed advancements to its XPILOT ADAS, “X Power” superchargers, and a robotic pony prototype equipped with LiDAR. XPeng wrapped last year’s Tech Day with what was probably its coolest announcement: the debut of its sixth generation eVTOL – the first to actually be worthy of the term “flying car.”
Previous versions of its eVTOLs didn’t have wheels but were based around the XPeng’s P7 EV architecture, so the UAM division still used the term “flying car.” However, AeroHT’s latest model can traverse both roads and air and has recently completed its maiden flight. More on that below.
Big upgrades to XPeng’s XNGP ADAS
When it debuted on the automaker’s G9 SUV in September, XNGP (navigation-guided pilot) was announced as XPeng’s last step before achieving fully autonomous driving. XNGP combines all scenarios of the automaker’s existing ADAS capabilities (highway, city, parking) into one holistic system that will soon no longer require high-precision maps to function – essentially opening up its availability to any and all areas.
At Tech Day 2022, XPeng shared that XNGP is backed by major hardware upgrades, including 508 TOPS of computing power, a dual-LiDAR system, 8-megapixel HD cameras, and a new software architecture called XNet, which operates using a closed-loop, self-evolving AI and data system.
XPeng unveils XNet neural network-based architecture at Tech Day
XPeng’s XNet varies from its first-generation visual perception architecture by adopting a deep neural network that was developed in-house to deliver visual recognition with human-like decision-making capabilities, drawing data from multiple cameras.
The company explained that its autonomous driving technical stack can reach 600 PFLOPS, increasing the training efficiency of the autonomous driving model by over 600 times. To that note, model training can be significantly reduced from 276 days to just 11 hours.
For added texture in regard to XNet’s streamlined efficiencies, it now only uses 9% of its Orin-X chip’s processing power, compared with 122% before optimization. These upgrades have enabled XPeng to establish an entirely closed-loop autonomous driving data system (data collection, labeling, training, and deployment) that utilizes lightning-fast machine learning to consistently self-improve. Per the release:
XPeng’s high-efficient AI capabilities enable consistent and unsupervised machine leaning and rapid iterations in training models, resolving over 1,000 rare corner cases each year. This highly efficient closed-loop AI and data system has helped reducing incident rate for the Highway NGP by 95%.
Continuing through the Tech Day presentation, the XPeng team explained that the technology above will help enable the automaker to develop and deploy an autonomous robotaxi fleet in China.
G9 SUV will be part of the XPeng’s robotaxi network in China
On stage at Tech Day 2022 in Guangzhou was XPeng’s vice president of autonomous driving, Dr. Xinzhou Wu, who shared that XPeng is developing a robotaxi network in China. The company shared that the G9 SUV became the country’s first mass-produced commercial vehicle to pass the Autonomous Driving Closed-field Test led by the Chinese government.
By completing the test to operate in a tier-one city like Guangzhou, XPeng states it has taken a major step forward in robotaxi development, all while using existing technology present on its latest EV. Wu elaborated:
Obtaining the road test permit by our mass-produced commercial vehicles – with no retrofit – is a major achievement. Our platform-based robotaxi development aims to generate significant cost benefits, and ensure product quality, safety and user experience.
XPeng’s robotic pet gets an upgrade to support better motion
As you can see from the image above, XPeng’s software is not the only technology that got upgrades since last year’s 1024 Tech Day event. The aforementioned “pony” robot has gotten a revamped design to support multidegree-of-freedom (MDOF) motion and locomotion capabilities. Other upgraded features include the following:
A more sophisticated mechanical structure
Higher transmission efficiency
Stronger robot actuator
High-end auto-grade computing platform
Battery and thermal management system
Significant upgrades to the motion control system
Robot can better adapt to complex indoor and outdoor terrain conditions like stairs, steep slopes, and gravel roads
The robot 2.0 looks cooler but is still sort of creepy. We’d still take it over a Tesla humanoid bot any day, though. We are looking forward to seeing it in action. Perhaps a battle against Boston Dynamics?
Latest eVTOL gets upgraded design, completes maiden flight
Last, and certainly not least, is the latest eVTOL update from AeroHT. Much like XPeng’s 1024 Tech Day last year, footage of its sixth-generation “flying car” stole the show.
During this year’s event, XPeng unveiled the latest version of the eVTOL, which has been optimized from last year’s horizontal dual-rotor structure to a new distributed multirotor configuration. The company also shared that the overall system design complexity of the eVTOL has been reduced to ensure better safety and reliability during flights.
As previously mentioned, this eVTOL is equipped with wheels and is capable of driving mode in addition to flight mode. XPeng AeroHT explained that driving mode is comparable to any conventional car in terms of functionality and measurement.
In flight mode, however, the eVTOL is piloted using the steering wheel and a right-hand gear lever that controls movement forward and backward, makes turns, ascends, hovers, and descends. AeroHT demonstrated this wheel and lever design in an eVTOL test flight video from July.
In addition to showcasing the upgraded flying car, XPeng also shared that the eVTOL has already completed its maiden flight in addition to multiple single-motor failure tests.
We’re still awaiting that flight footage from XPeng, but for now you can check out the rendering video showcasing the new eVTOL design shared during the Tech Day presentation.
FTC: We use income earning auto affiliate links.More.
The UAW union’s Stellantis Council met yesterday to discuss the beleaguered carmaker’s “ongoing failure” to honor the agreement that ended the 2023 labor strike, and their latest union memo doesn’t pull many punches.
In an email sent out by the UAW earlier today (received at 4:55PM CST), UAW President Shawn Fain wrote, “For years, the company picked us off plant-by-plant and we lacked the will and the means to fight back. Today is different. Because we stood together and demanded the right to strike over job security—product commitment—we have the tools to fight back and win … We unanimously recommend to the membership that every UAW worker at Stellantis prepare for a fight, and we all get ready to vote YES to authorize a strike at Stellantis.”
Kia promises the new EV9 GT will have “enormous power,” but that’s not all. For the first time, the Kia EV9 GT was caught with an active spoiler, giving us a sneak peek at potential new upgrades.
The brand’s first three-row electric SUV is already making its presence known in the US, helping push Kia to back-to-back record sales months. Meanwhile, a more powerful, sporty variant is on the way.
Kia confirmed the EV9 GT will top off the electric SUV’s lineup in April. Packing “enormous power,” the high-performance GT model can accelerate from 0 to 62 mph (0 to 100 km/h) in 4 secs.
With a “high-output” dual-motor (AWD) system, the EV9 GT can quickly pick up speed despite weighing over 5,000 lbs.
Kia also equipped it with other high-performance features, such as a reinforced suspension and electronic braking system, for better control and stability.
We’ve already caught a glimpse of the performance electric SUV out testing, revealing aggressive new bumpers and wheels. Now, a new design feature has been spotted.
Kia EV9 GT could come with an active rear spoiler
The latest video from HealerTV shows the EV9 GT with what appears to be an active spoiler. As the reporter noted, it could be similar to the one spotted on the Genesis GV70 Magma.
Tesla’s Model X also used to come with an active spoiler until it was dropped a few years back. Although the GT model was spotted with one, Kia could just be testing new features, so don’t get too excited yet.
Earlier this week, a video from HealerTV showed the front row of the EV9 GT, comparing it to the current GT-Line model.
Several differences can be immediately noticed, including a more aggressive, all-black design with a yellow stripe down the center of the seat.
Kia is set to launch the EV9 GT in early 2025. It will rival other performance SUVs like the Tesla Model X Plaid.
Although prices have yet to be confirmed, the GT model is expected to sit above the current GT-Line at $73,900. In comparison, Tesla’s Model X Plaid starts at $94,990 and can sprint from 0 to 60 mph in 2.5 secs.
FTC: We use income earning auto affiliate links.More.
Consumer Reports and EV charging app Chargeway are working together to give drivers a better way to rate public chargers, report uptime, and address maintenance issues.
The technical collaboration with Chargeway is part of a larger effort called the EV Charging Community, which engages with a number of different EV advocacy groups including Plug In America, GreenLatinos, and Generation 180, and leverages the mobile app to rate public EV charging experiences based on various factors, with the findings reported back to industry stakeholders like EVSE manufacturers, CPOs, and utilities.
Be heard
“We are very excited to be partnering with Consumer Reports,” says Chargeway founder, Matt Teske. “From day one, Chargeway has focused on a driver first app design to provide easier EV charging experiences as well as transparency for what drivers can anticipate at (the) station they choose … we share Consumer Reports’ goal to give drivers a voice in the public EV charging reliability conversation. Now, instead of posting complaints on social media and feeling ignored, EV drivers can use the Chargeway mobile app to provide their feedback to the leading consumer advocacy organization.”
Consumer Reports says it’s already seen nearly a third of its 1,600 enrolled community members experience a problem with public charging, so it’s a real problem. “Charging stations are critical services, but when they’re out of order or barely functional, it wastes consumers’ valuable time,” explains Drew Toher, Consumer Reports’ sustainability campaign manager.
Consumer Reports points out that EV drivers who don’t use Chargeway can also enroll to be part of the community at this link.
Electrek’s Take
Chargeway founder Matt Teske is an old friend. He’s a good friend, too, so it’s great to see his top-shelf EV charging app starting to get some of the recognition it deserves. The CR tie-up and added visibility these ratings will give to industry stakeholders are only going to make things better for EV drivers everywhere.
That up there? That’s one of my early interview episodes of Quick Charge featuring a walkthrough of Chargeway+, another collab between Matt and Austin Energy. Enjoy!
SOURCE | IMAGES: Chargeway, Consumer Reports.
FTC: We use income earning auto affiliate links.More.