Xpeng Motors Chairman He Xiaopeng: The second-generation VLA will first address the issue of extremity before tackling the standardization problem.

Securities Times China Securities Journal News (Reporter Yu Liyan): On March 16, before the launch of XPeng’s second-generation VLA (Visual Language Action Model), XPeng Motors held an “Ask Me Anything” live broadcast. XPeng Chairman He Xiaopeng attended and answered users’ core questions online, clarified the update and upgrade plans, connected to verify the real capabilities of the second-generation VLA, and built a trust barrier with users.

Regarding the original intention behind the development of the second-generation VLA, He Xiaopeng said it was inspired by his experience of having his mother try autonomous driving. Past autonomous driving often experienced sudden braking, stalling, and other issues, which made older users hesitant to use autonomous driving for travel. Therefore, two years ago, XPeng decided to overturn the original paradigm, aiming to create autonomous driving that even parents would dare to drive and love, thereby reconstructing the autonomous driving technology model.

He Xiaopeng believes that the essence of technology is to make life easier. In the future, only when autonomous driving systems can take over once every thousand kilometers—not due to safety concerns—and achieve full automation, will autonomous driving truly move from “geek novelty” to “mass daily use.” The system’s ability to handle complex and extreme driving scenarios is fundamentally a breakthrough in “high-dimensional to low-dimensional” technology. The second-generation VLA follows the approach of solving extreme issues first, then standard issues, essentially addressing the upper limit capabilities first, then filling in the middle and shortfalls, achieving comprehensive improvement.

He Xiaopeng stated that the second-generation VLA is XPeng’s first version toward L4 autonomous driving. Regarding users’ concerns about the AIOS 6.0 update for vehicle models, He Xiaopeng revealed that AIOS 6.0 will be rolled out within 2026. In the AI era, traditional smart vehicles have evolved into a combination of intelligent agents and cars. Therefore, early 2026, XPeng will integrate its cockpit and autonomous driving departments, enabling collaborative coupling of core capabilities such as smart cabins, voice interaction, and vehicle intelligence. Under a unified team structure, they will advance R&D. Currently, XPeng is working on a comprehensive architecture system integration, and it is expected that in Q3 and Q4 of 2026, platform-based technological achievements will be accelerated across multiple models.

“The past decade was the era of new energy vehicles; the next decade will be the era of intelligent economies. Cross-domain integration and the combination of software and hardware are key to breaking through. Ignoring intelligent agents + cars now is like missing the wave of new energy a decade ago,” He Xiaopeng said. Currently, XPeng is continuously exploring cross-domain development routes based on the technological foundation of the second-generation VLA, expanding the boundaries of technological applications.