Leapmotor's 2026 Global Strategy: From "Borrowing a Boat" to "Building One"

Core Data/Events ● Sales Leader: February 2026, Leapmotor delivered 28,067 units (+10.99% YoY), topping China’s EV startups . Q3 2025 sales hit 174,000 units (+102%), revenue RMB 19.45B (+97.3%), gross margin 14.5%—achieving quarterly profitability . ● Export Champion: Q3 2025 exports 17,000 units, cumulative 38,000 units—1 among Chinese EV startups. 2026 overseas sales target: 100,000-150,000 units, 10-15% of annual million-unit goal . ● Channel Network: By end-2025, Leapmotor International (JV with Stellantis) expanded to 400+ overseas outlets, targeting 550+ in 2025 . Now present in 35+ countries, with 1,800+ global sales & service points .

In-Depth Analysis Leapmotor’s 2026 trajectory sits at a critical juncture: domestic sales leadership, export dominance, and a Stellantis partnership evolving from “channel leverage” to “tech +production capacity co-building.” Five dimensions decode its global strategy: 1. Fundamentals: Profitability Achieved, Scale Effects Kicking In Q3 2025 gross margin hit 14.5% (+6.4pp YoY), net profit RMB 150M—turning profitable . This marks the core difference from Neta, which collapsed after RMB 18B in losses . February’s 28,067 units topped EV startups, with B-platform cumulative sales nearing 200,000, solidifying its position in the 100k-150k segment . New A10 (B03X), with lidar and end-to-end Intelligent Driving , targets downward markets as the next potential blockbuster . 2. Overseas Performance: 1 Exporter—How? Q3 exports of 17,000 units, cumulative 38,000—behind this lies the “Leapmotor International” JV channel dividend. Leveraging Stellantis’ European dealer network, Leapmotor achieved within 12 months of entry:

3 models launched (C10, T03, B10)

800+ European sales outlets

35,000+ vehicle registrations

2026 target of 100,000-150,000 overseas units means tripling cumulative exports in one year. The enabler:Europe local production. 3. Localization Strategy: From “Borrowing” to “Building” “30.7% tariff + 10% freight kill our competitiveness—top priority is local production in Europe by Q2/Q3 2026” . Spain is the calculated choice:

Stellantis’ existing plants ready for retrofit

Relatively lower labor costs

Generous government green subsidies (CATL, Envision already landed)

This mirrors Chery (Spain) and BYD (Hungary)—hedge trade barriers with local production, leveraging “Made in Europe” for brand premium.

Industry Insights Leapmotor’s 2026 global strategy offers three lessons for Chinese EV startups:

“Borrowing a Boat” Is a Shortcut, But “Building One” Is the Endgame: Stellantis’ channels enabled rapid Europe rollout, but the 30.7% tariff forces local production. Once the Spain plant lands, Leapmotor will complete the leap from “trade export” to “capacity export.”

“Tech Reverse Export” Is the Highest-Form of go overseas: If Stellantis indeed adopts Leapmotor tech for European mainstream models, Leapmotor evolves from “car seller” to “tech licensor.” This marks the first time a Chinese EV startup “reverse empowers”tradition giants on core technology.

“Aggressive Scaling” Must Match “System Capability”: The 2026 targets—1.05M units, 100k-150k overseas, local production land—demand extreme supply chain, channel, after-sales, and quality control capabilities. Whether Leapmotor becomes the “value Tesla” will be decided in 2026-2027.

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