At the end of 2014, Alibaba’s annual meeting was held. The executives took turns to speak while He XPeng sat in the audience, listening to “Alibaba A, Alibaba B, Alibaba C, Alibaba D” on the stage, with Alibaba’s remarkable performance and ambitious plans ringing in his ears. When the annual meeting ended, He XPeng didn’t hear anything about UC, which made him feel a little “uncomfortable.”
This was the first year that the founder of UC joined Alibaba. On June 11, 2014, Alibaba acquired UC for $4 billion, causing a sensation and setting the record for the largest acquisition in the history of the Chinese internet at that time.
The next day, across the ocean, the 11-year-old electric car company Tesla announced that it would share all of its technology patents with its peers to promote the advancement of electric car technology.
This news came somewhat unexpectedly, but it had a lasting impact – in that year, emerging Chinese automakers such as NIO, XPeng, Youxia, LeEco, ZERO, WM, AIWAYS, and Byton emerged like mushrooms after the rain. Although many of them did not grow up in the end.
He XPeng’s second entrepreneurship also began here.
After Tesla opened its patents, Xia Hang, the head of the GAC New Energy Center Control Department, became busy as more and more people from the Internet came to him, saying they wanted to build cars together. Among the people who came, He XPeng was among the first.
The topic of car-making has exploded in the automotive, internet, and investment circles. This was like a sudden carnival, the Chinese people’s passion for cars had never been so high. The technology of internal combustion engines has already become very mature, and China has fallen behind in the automotive industry for more than a hundred years, with no chance of catching up.
Years later, He XPeng himself said that there is no chance for cars to overtake on corners, and now we have only chosen a branch track called “intelligent cars.”
On this branch track, traditional companies and new players stand on the same starting line. Although when there was a blank slate for emerging Chinese automakers, in 2013, Tesla’s Model S, the predecessor of the electric car, had already sold 22,300 vehicles globally. But when you look at the market of 1 billion cars worldwide, it’s still not much. New energy and intelligent cars are the future that many people are betting on. More importantly, this time, China is not too far behind and there is a window for us to compete.
Xia Hang chose He XPeng. One was because he saw his vision and determination, and the other was that building cars required money, and He XPeng had it.
That year, He XPeng was 36 years old and had founded UC for ten years. At that time, UC had grown into the largest third-party mobile browser and was acquired by Alibaba for $4 billion. He XPeng had achieved financial freedom.
Money has an innate attraction to ordinary people. Six years have passed since Alibaba acquired UC, and He XPeng is still asked about the story of his financial freedom in various public occasions. He once told the reporter who interviewed him that “talking about financial freedom is quite low,” even though it was before the camera was set up. At that time, he had already left Alibaba and invested all his wealth in XPeng Motors, but that’s another story.
The Past
He said he started his business out of “jealousy of the poor and lower-middle-class.” He was born in a working-class family in Huangshi, Hubei Province. When he was 18, he was admitted to the computer department of South China University of Technology. After graduation, he entered AsiaInfo. He worked in various departments such as development, operations, testing, customer service, pre-sales, and after-sales support, and eventually became a project manager.
He liked to compare himself to others, with a strong “If a general has no soldiers, could he still be considered advantageous?” attitude. In 1996, he took his first flight and saw a financially free career woman in a magazine, imagining himself being like her one day. After he started working, he liked to find learning templates. Every one or two years, he would find a target among the people around him. After one or two years, he would surpass that person and then find another target. Until one day, he realized that his boss in the office was the one person he seemed unable to catch up with. In 2001, his boss already earned over 50,000 RMB per month. It was impossible for himself to surpass him on this path.
Unable to compete, He XPeng had the idea of starting a business. In 2004, he left AsiaInfo with his colleague and senior Liang Jie. At that time, Liang Jie was a key figure in developing a large-capacity email system at AsiaInfo. At AsiaInfo, He XPeng and Liang Jie participated in the development of China’s first email system to pass performance tests at the tens of millions level, which occupied 40% of the domestic market share. Major websites such as China.com, 21CN, People’s Daily, and Xinhua were all using AsiaInfo’s email system. With such a background, the two of them quickly established their direction for development in entrepreneurship: developing mobile email (UCMAIL) and becoming the BlackBerry of China.
In 2003, Ding Lei, the founder of NetEase, became the richest man in China worth 7.5 billion RMB.
UCmail didn’t make anything amazing, but it became the first domino – Ding Lei used UCmail and thought it was good, lending 800,000 RMB to He XPeng and Liang Jie and also lending NetEase’s office and servers to them. In NetEase’s office, He XPeng met Li Xueling, who was the chief editor at the time.
After that, He XPeng and Liang Jie developed another product – the UCWeb mobile browser. In 2005, Li Xueling introduced He XPeng to Yu Yongfu, who was the vice president of Lenovo Investment at the time. After several communications, at the end of 2006, Yu Yongfu brought the UC project to Lenovo Investment to discuss whether to invest or not.During that year, for a long time, UC had no money in its account. In order to pay the employees’ salaries, XPeng He went out every month to borrow money from classmates, friends, parents, and siblings. One day, the Tianhe District Government of Guangzhou City issued a 100,000 yuan small and medium-sized enterprise technology support fund to UC. With the 100,000 yuan check in hand, XPeng He shook it and exclaimed, “I am so happy! I don’t have to borrow money for two months!”
For XPeng He, Lenovo’s investment was crucial. However, despite Yu Yongfu’s strong recommendation, the Lenovo Investment Committee ultimately did not approve the investment in UC by a single vote.
After his hopes were dashed, XPeng He turned to Yu Yongfu and asked, “Yongfu, would you like to join us?”
Yu Yongfu looked at the two young entrepreneurs in front of him and saw the potential for UC’s future. He joined as CEO.
The problem of money was resolved–Yu Yongfu introduced Lei Jun to XPeng He. At the end of 2006, Lei Jun invested 4 million yuan in UC as an angel investor and became the chairman of UC in 2007. That same year, Sinovation Ventures and Legend Capital invested 10 million US dollars in UC. Now, these initial partners have become “brothers” to XPeng He, and they appeared at the launch event of XPeng Motors.
Yu Yongfu became the one standing in the forefront of the UC three-legged stool.
Many people do not understand XPeng He’s “making way for others.” He said, “At the time, Liang Jie and I felt that our abilities were not enough, and Yongfu’s height and breadth were both stronger than ours. Founders must have a mindset to attract people who are better than you.”
In the following years of UC, XPeng He, the “super product manager,” hardly appeared in the media. He was exceptionally low-key. Even in the year or two before UC was acquired by Alibaba, even if he occasionally appeared in the public eye, he would share his thoughts on products and innovation, rather than talking about his entrepreneurial experience. The media noticed that he had clear thinking and sound logic, was not a poor speaker, but still labeled him as an “introverted geek.”
This was like two different people compared to XPeng He during the XPeng Motors period, where he was known as the “dreamer.”
Second Entrepreneurship
Standing at the forefront of the mobile Internet, UC Browser became the world’s largest third-party mobile browser. On June 22, 2014, Alibaba announced its acquisition of UC for $4 billion. Overnight, XPeng He achieved financial freedom at the age of 36.
Five years later, he spoke under the spotlight about the “pain and confusion” after achieving financial freedom. He bought good wine and yachts, sat in the spacious office given by Alibaba, but did not know where his dream went. He was not satisfied, uneasy, and had many new “toys” after having money, but he did not think that this should be the pinnacle of his life.Assistant of He XPeng said that for more than half a year, He XPeng often locked himself in the office with a “serious face”. In the past, watching the user base of UC Browser grow from 1,000 to 10,000, and then to 100,000, every time the user base grows exponentially, it will bring a sense of victory to the entrepreneur He XPeng. However, when the company really grew, He XPeng realized that it was very difficult to grow from 500 million to 550 million. He said in an interview, “That kind of stimulus was gone.”
At the same time, as an angel investor, He XPeng quietly developed XPeng Motors. On September 13, 2016, XPeng Motors officially released its first models – XPeng Motors BETA version.
On May 4, 2017, XPeng Motors’ billion-dollar production base settled in the urban area of Zhaoqing. The project is divided into three phases, with a total investment of 10 billion yuan for the first and second phases.
On August 22, 2017, the then chairman and CEO of Alibaba Cultural and Entertainment Group, Yu Yongfu, sent an internal letter-He XPeng would officially “retire” and “start a new journey of chasing dreams”.
The “chasing dreams” with a bit of suspense was revealed seven days later. On August 29, XPeng Motors announced that He XPeng officially joined and was appointed as chairman.
Unlike ten years ago, when Yu Yongfu stood in front of the stage, from this day on, He XPeng himself stood in front of the stage.
At the employee meeting, XPeng Motors co-founder Xia Heng spoke in front of the “Welcome XPeng” sign: “Mr. He XPeng, as the core investor of the team, has laid a solid foundation for the company since its inception, relying on his significant influence in the Chinese Internet industry.”
Among XPeng Motors’ investors in the first two years were YY founder Li Xueling, 58.com CEO Yao Jinbo, Cheetah Mobile CEO Fu Sheng, Tencent executive Wu Xiaoguang, and Zhen Fund founder Anna Fang. Indeed, XPeng Motors’ ability to operate at the beginning of the entrepreneurship relied on He XPeng’s “influence in the Internet industry.” That day, He XPeng wore a red polo shirt and stood in the center of seven executives wearing the same white clothes, taking a group photo.
This is an important day for both XPeng Motors and He XPeng himself. Previously, He XPeng pushed XPeng Motors forward behind the scenes, using his accumulated capital and contacts from his first entrepreneurship. After this day, He XPeng went all in on making cars. Compared to the first time he started a business, he received more attention, was more like an entrepreneur and a leader, and had more dreams, or, to use a different word, ambitions.# Reason for leaving Ali and Starting a New Venture
When it comes to the reason for leaving Ali and starting a second venture, He XPeng often gives an answer full of fatherly love and warmth. “In 2017, my son was born. I suddenly thought, when he grows up and asks me what his dad does, what will I answer? I hope to have some stories to tell him.”
He also fondly remembers receiving a call on the day his son was born from his friend Fu Jixun, a partner at CCV, who said, “XPeng, it’s time to get into the smart car industry. If we don’t enter this arena now, we’ll miss out.”
These have become the standard answers for “why his second venture”. He repeatedly speaks of these interesting anecdotes with a smile on his face and mild temperament speaking in ordinary Mandarin with a Hubei accent.
However, during a recent TV interview, when he was asked again about his motivation for starting a second venture, He XPeng said, “First, I want to challenge myself; second, I want to prove myself; only third is emotions.”
Perhaps because during his first venture he spent more time behind the scenes, or perhaps because UC’s ultimate outcome was acquisition, He XPeng’s desire to “prove himself” is strong. He has named the car after himself, but when facing the camera, he tries to keep his ambitions light. He said, at the time he thought of many names, but they were all registered. Later, everyone listed a bunch of names, and whichever could be registered would be used. In the end, “XPeng” was registered.
When others continue to ask, whether it is necessary to link the fate of the car and the person, He XPeng has not denied it.
He has indeed made up his mind to make cars. Making cars requires money, and he personally invested over 300 million US dollars. His wife objected to him doing this, and he said, “If I don’t put all my assets at stake, how can others trust me?”
He XPeng’s friend and partner at Wuyuan Capital, Liu Qin, said: “When we were discussing this matter, I could feel that he was not doing it for the money, because he had already received returns from UC, but he wanted to create an opportunity that he could be proud of for his whole life, to create a huge, creative, and influential business. This motivation is particularly pure and precious, and he just wants to accomplish something big.”
After He XPeng went all in on car manufacturing, the development of XPeng Motors took off, and he proved himself as an internet entrepreneur who can move capital.# Changes
On October 12th, 2017, XPeng Motors officially put its first mass-produced vehicle into production and became the first internet-based car manufacturer to do so in the industry. On December 15th, 2017, XPeng Motors received an official investment from Jack Ma’s former company, Alibaba. On January 10th, 2018, XPeng Motors unveiled its G3 model. On January 29th, 2018, the company announced a Series B financing of 2.2 billion yuan, led again by Alibaba. At the same time, in order to further enhance its financing capabilities, He XPeng invited Morgan Stanley Asia Pacific Chairman, Huondi Gu, to join as the company’s president. In November 2019, Lei Jun, the big brother of Xiaomi, once again invested in XPeng Motors with real money. In August 2020, XPeng Motors was listed on the New York Stock Exchange, followed by a secondary listing on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange a year later.
After continuous entrepreneurial practices, He XPeng has become increasingly aware of the rhythm of technology, capital, organization and talent. Among the new forces in the car manufacturing industry, XPeng Motors was not the first to set out, but it was the first to clearly make intelligence its core competitiveness. It was not the most profitable, but it was the most stable in terms of finances and cash flow.
He XPeng himself has also undergone other changes. He has appeared more and more frequently in the spotlight and often makes some unexpected statements.
Perhaps it was the new media marketing power displayed by Lei Jun in the founding of Xiaomi that gave He XPeng a new insight, and he has become more and more adept at using new media to amplify his voice, regularly speaking from controversial and spreadable viewpoints.
On XPeng Motors’ fourth anniversary brand day in August 2018, He XPeng opened a PPT on a large screen on stage, saying “The core of intelligent cars lies in operation, not manufacturing.” “Who in China is developing and manufacturing intelligent cars? SAIC, Geely, XPeng, Nio.” He XPeng could probably anticipate the controversy brought about by such a headline-grabbing statement, and seemed to intentionally become the focus of public opinion through outrageous statements. The explanation of the PPT content is no longer important, people remember the “madman.”
Also in 2018, Li Bin set a goal for Nio to deliver 10,000 vehicles by the end of the year. He XPeng challenged him on WeChat by saying “No one can deliver 10,000 vehicles this year.” Li Bin responded, “If we can’t deliver, I’ll buy you an ES8.” At the end of the year, Nio delivered over 13,000 vehicles. He XPeng fulfilled the bet, buying an ES8 with his own money. The media and public opinion were very fond of this “gambling” drama, and after waves of discussion and reports, Nio and XPeng were firmly linked together.
During the same period, on December 12th, 2018, XPeng Motors announced the official launch and delivery of the G3, which was a full year later than Nio.
Slow is Fast – The Story of XPeng Motors
XPeng Motors’ founder, He XPeng, believes that “slow is fast”. He said that new energy vehicles currently only account for four percent of the market share, and this is just the beginning of a long battle. Moving fast does not necessarily mean success. He believes in “big positioning” rather than “small positioning” and thinks beyond present-day scenarios and market demands. Only by making profit before investing further, can a company grow into a big player.
When compared to other players that prioritize delivery speed and volume, He XPeng prefers to emphasize “stability” in XPeng Motors. He is proud of the company’s R&D efforts and even stated that their first car model was only used for internal testing. He is willing to invest heavily in their talents, which include former Tesla technical expert Gu Junli, former senior executive of JD.com and president of Procter & Gamble’s Greater China Meishang Division Xiong Qingyun, and the former Chairman of J.P. Morgan’s Asia-Pacific Investment Banking Division Gu Hongdi, among others.
In 2018, He XPeng spoke at the “Chaos University” of the “Dewu” program in China, where he shared his experiences of recruitment by using the analogy of growing carrots: “In the beginning, I made a huge mistake of hiring based on cost-effectiveness. When the company grows rapidly, and the pit becomes bigger, if the carrot does not grow fast enough, there will be complaints. Hence, the solution is to find larger carrots for a small pit, and keep telling them that the pit is going to be bigger soon”.
He XPeng is known for his humorous analogies and excellent public speaking skills. He has retained the roots of his internet-based genes even after transitioning to the world of manufacturing.
The company culture is more like that of the Internet. He XPeng doesn’t allow employees to call him “CEO He” and instead asks them to call him “XPeng”. This culture originated from the “fifth year in college” culture that was formed during the UC startup period. Within the company, everyone is a senior brother who learns from each other. He XPeng is the eldest brother, and everyone calls each other by their first names. However, from UC to XPeng Motors, there has been a significant change in the industry. Now, more than 60% of the employees recruited are from the automotive field. He XPeng himself has said that neither manufacturing nor the Internet can be too strong. But he insists that the top-down thinking must be that of the Internet. He expects the company’s development path to be “from a product company to a service company, and then to an operation company.”
Peng Friends
In 2019, new energy vehicle startups experienced a market downturn. NIO, which went public in 2018, suffered a series of spontaneous combustion accidents in 2019, forcing it to recall vehicles, suffer huge losses, experience a plummet in its stock price, and face a reduction in investment and a near-break of its capital chain.
In October 2019, an article titled “Li Bin of NIO: The Saddest Person of 2019” went viral on social media. People have not forgotten the argument and bet between He XPeng and Li Bin from the previous year. This time, He XPeng posted a Weibo, showing a very mild response as a friend and colleague, “As a friend and companion, I support brother Li Bin!… We will all become stronger in global competition.”
It’s not difficult to understand He XPeng’s encouragement to Li Bin. The market downturn has hit every new energy vehicle startup, and everyone sympathizes with each other. What’s most damaging is that the money has run out. After 2018, the financing speed of new energy vehicle companies has slowed down significantly. In the middle of 2019, news of a ¥10 billion investment agreement between NIO and Beijing E-Town China Holdings remained unsettled. Then, in October, news emerged that NIO’s planned ¥5 billion investment with the Wu Xing district government in Huzhou, Zhejiang Province was stopped, and Li Bin said, “NIO is sick.” More and more companies have gone “silent” in the harsh winter.
At a time when money was hard to come by for many automakers, on November 13, 2019, XPeng Motors announced that it had completed its C round financing of $400 million, with Xiaomi being the main investor. This was more than 20 months since the last round of financing.
Xiaomi’s investment this time can be said to have “saved the realm.” Prior to this story, Xiaomi went public in Hong Kong in 2018 and was not favored by the capital market, with its stock price falling below its IPO price upon its debut. He XPeng invested $100 million in Xiaomi out of his own pocket. Later, Lei Jun flew to Guangzhou to drink with He XPeng. At the Xiaomi-Kingsoft annual meeting, the big award was the XPeng G3. Going back even further, in 2006, Lei Jun invested ¥4 million in UC’s angel round and personally became chairman of the board.
Later, in order to promote XPeng Motors, He XPeng appeared in a video by the internet celebrity Zhu Yidan, playing a domineering CEO with a prop that read “Lei Jun’s best friend.” On August 27th of that year, XPeng Motors rang the bell for its IPO, and Lei Jun was present, gifting a gold brick. He XPeng thanked Lei Jun in his speech, saying that Lei Jun made him a dreamer.
He XPeng once told the media that he doesn’t have the same temperament as Jack Ma or Lei Jun, who have the boldness to gather heroes from all corners of the world. He himself is not good at socializing and is even a bit awkward.
But this is probably being modest. He XPeng has many friends and “old friends”, who he has known for more than a decade, from UC to Alibaba, and now XPeng. When these people sit down for a meal, He XPeng can sell ten cars in one night. The angel investment list for XPeng Motors initially consisted of a group of friends who He XPeng knew before.
Regarding the secret of friendship, He XPeng said two words: sincerity.
He XPeng is loyal. In February 2018, Wang Xin, the founder of Kuaibo, ended his three-year, six-month prison sentence and was released. He XPeng soon posted a photo of him, Wang Xin, Li Xueling, and Yao Jinbo on Weibo, welcoming Wang Xin back and saying, “The legend of the Wang Xin brothers will continue in the world.” They are all old friends. After Wang Xin’s release, he started a new venture, and He XPeng generously invested in it, giving it his full support.
Setbacks
When the market was in the doldrums, He XPeng had some brothers who helped him out, but his toughest days were faced alone. On July 10, 2019, the 2020 model of the XPeng G3 was officially launched. The new model has a post-subsidy price of 143,800 – 196,800 yuan and a comprehensive range of up to 520 km. Earlier models released in 2019 had a post-subsidy price of 155,800 – 199,800 yuan, with a maximum range of only 365 km. This caused dissatisfaction among old car owners – many had just picked up their cars, and some hadn’t even received them yet, and there was already a “more beautiful goods at a cheaper price” new car on the market.
Public opinion was inflamed, and on July 12th, He XPeng posted an apology letter on Weibo, saying “sorry for making everyone sad,” and offering a solution: when purchasing another XPeng vehicle within three years, an additional subsidy of 10,000 yuan can be enjoyed.
However, this “sorry” did not gain the understanding of the car owners, and they were not satisfied with the compensation plan. On July 13th, hundreds of car owners drove their XPeng cars to the XPeng headquarters, raised banners, and demanded a refund.
He XPeng sat in the office, looking at the chaotic crowd. He had “never experienced such offline madness” and felt anxious. During that time, He XPeng became ill and coughed uncontrollably when he spoke. When his colleagues saw him, they didn’t speak. He later recalled that those days were the hardest in years. “It was difficult to find someone to talk to.”
Although the storm subsided over time, He XPeng learned a profound lesson from this incident: making cars is different from the Internet. If three of the twenty aspects are not done well, customers will blow up.
The Internet emphasizes iteration, with low costs and software upgrades a matter of a few clicks for users. Iteration in manufacturing, on the other hand, requires consideration of the entire process, organization, and post-sales. Manufacturing is a massive system that is closely interconnected. He XPeng, who lacked experience, stumbled here.
He XPeng attributed the “accident” to the failure to keep “customer-centricity” in mind. Although he lacked sufficient experience in manufacturing, he was not reckless. In fact, boasting was only superficial when he first started making cars. He XPeng said that when he was outside the industry, he thought that Internet people entering manufacturing would be like college students taking over high schoolers’ territory. But when he got in himself, he discovered that making cars is 100 times harder than the Internet.
From research and development, design, to production, sales, operation, and post-sales, He XPeng said that the manufacturing industry is subject to the “shortcoming effect”; if any aspect is not done well, it is fatal. “This is why the CEO must be a super product manager.” Once again, Internet thinking has filled the gap in the manufacturing industry.
As for the “rights protection” storm, it did not have a significant impact on He XPeng. On August 27, 2020, XPeng Motors went public on the NYSE, becoming the third new electric vehicle company to be listed, following NIO and Xpeng. The market value corresponding to the issue price reached $10.82 billion.
At the bell-ringing ceremony, He XPeng stood on the stage and was so excited that he became incoherent. At this moment, He XPeng seemed to have the “heroic spirit that gathers people around the world” that Jack Ma and Lei Jun had. Sitting below him were Lei Jun, Yu Yongfu, Liu Qin, and Fu Jixun… he thanked everyone, saying that the biggest regret of Alibaba’s IPO was not ringing the bell with the UC brothers at the time, but now the dream has come true.
The next day, He XPeng wrote on Weibo: “I am very happy to be able to struggle with a group of passionate and righteous brothers for the sake of our dream. I hope we can still drink tea and chat about our past bragging even after we get old.”
He XPeng is gentle in making friends. When he took a picture with Li Bin, Li Xiang, and Li Yanhong, He XPeng said that he was the one who was accumulating opportunities. There is no war between the three companies.
The relationship with Musk, the foreign rival, however, is somewhat awkward.# China’s Competing Carmakers with Tesla
Chinese electric vehicle start-ups constantly face comparisons to Tesla, and He XPeng is no exception. He has never shied away from expressing his admiration for Musk and holds Tesla stock. He once said publicly that Tesla’s market value should reach $500 billion.
In 2018, He was asked how he views the competitive relationship with Tesla. He stated that both companies have different positioning and do not have direct competition. Tesla focuses on the high-end market, while XPeng Motors’ focuses on making less than 300,000 RMB cars in China. He believes that “whoever wins over the masses wins the world.”
In May 2019, He criticized Tesla on Weibo. “The domestic version of Tesla Model 3 priced at 328,000 RMB is not competitive… Wait for XPeng P7 to come out; it will definitely crush them.”
Later, Tesla Model 3 dropped its prices several times, narrowing the gap with XPeng P7.
In terms of sales, Tesla Model 3 overwhelmed XPeng P7. In September of this year, XPeng P7 delivered 2,573 units, while Tesla Model 3 sold over 11,000 units in China.
Competition has made the atmosphere become rigid. Nowadays, He seems reluctant to be compared with Musk. “As time goes on, comparing is more and more unnecessary. He works in his field, and I have my own thinking logic.”
The battlefield of product competition is in China, and public opinion is present on the other side of the earth. In March 2019, Tesla sued its Autopilot team engineer, Cao Guangzhi, for stealing its Autopilot source code. Cao Guangzhi was one of 40 employees who could access Tesla’s Autopilot source code before he left Tesla to work for XPeng Motors.
The lawsuit lasted for almost two years, and later, Tesla voluntarily withdrew the case. Cao Guangzhi had to join another company and publicly apologized for dragging XPeng Motors into the trademark dispute.
But notwithstanding, the accumulated grievances between Tesla and XPeng Motors, Musk and He XPeng, have become engraved in public opinion, which are difficult to eradicate.
He had once said that he wrote an email to Musk when he started to establish his company, but Musk did not respond. Later, XPeng Motors could easily attract Musk’s attention, and intellectual property disputes continue on, and verbal altercations are unavoidable.
On November 21, 2020, at the Guangzhou Auto Show, He XPeng unveiled the new generation P7 and released a further next-generation autonomous driving architecture that includes LIDAR. Then Musk tweeted, “They have our old software system, but not our new Tesla inference processor.” implying that XPeng copied Tesla.
This time, He XPeng made a strong statement: “Starting next year, you should be prepared to be beaten by us in China’s autonomous driving technology, and as for international competition, we will meet.”
Months ago, He XPeng was interviewed. At XPeng’s employee canteen, the host asked about Musk, and He XPeng said, “He often speaks ill of us online.”
## “Is that so? What did he say about you guys?”
He XPeng lowered his head and took a few bites of his food without answering the question. Instead, he smiled and said,
“This is a process. You have to make those who don’t believe in you eventually believe in you.”
He XPeng believed in timing creating heroes. His first entrepreneurial venture hit the rising tide of the mobile internet industry, and for his second venture, he came prepared and aimed at smart technology instead of new energy.
2018
On August 18, 2022, He XPeng sent a speech to all employees of XPeng Motors to mark the company’s eight-year anniversary.
He recounted the challenges faced on a new track eight years prior, the capital winter of 2019, the supply chain challenges posed by the pandemic in 2020, and the early days when there were only a few people on the team. Now, XPeng is seventh in national electric vehicle sales and nineteenth globally, while leading the industry in technologies such as intelligent assisted driving and interactions.
On social media, he posted an old photo of the XPeng Motors reception area.
Inside and out, the photo showed the hardships of the road and the sense of accomplishment as dreams became reality.
However, those who know He XPeng well know that he always embodies a gambler’s spirit, liking the sense of creating something from scratch and enjoying the process of hard work leading to success, even to the point of starting over again after achieving fame.
In 2016, when UC celebrated its twelfth anniversary, a journalist asked him how he could maintain his “entrepreneurial spirit.”
After a moment’s hesitation, he replied, “Come back and ask me again in a year.”
A year later, news of his departure from Alibaba was made public, and he soon embarked on a wholehearted entrepreneurial journey with XPeng Motors.
References:
“UC12 Entrepreneurship Memory: Five Factors that Let He XPeng Turn the Tide, Once Borrowed Money to Dodge a Crisis” 2016, Sina Technology
“He XPeng: He Came from XPeng” April 2020, Interface News
“Beast Master | Domestic Killer” August 2019, Beast Building
Video “He XPeng: Having to Eat Against the Wall for 7 RMB Fast Food with the President of Gaode” November 2019, NetEase Little Champions
Video “Ai Cheng Dialogues with He XPeng: What Happened to the Person who Once Challenged Musk?” November 2020, Ai Wen Top Figures
—End—
This article is a translation by ChatGPT of a Chinese report from 42HOW. If you have any questions about it, please email bd@42how.com.