Li Auto Inc.'s (NASDAQ:LI) head of autonomous driving will now reportedly lead the company's Robotics effort.
Shift In Strategy For Li Auto
Lang Xianpeng, the Chinese automaker's head of self-driving technology, will now be the company's head of hardware operations, which will see the Senior VP become responsible for Li Auto's robotics R&D, CnEVPost reported on Thursday, citing local Chinese media reports.
Li Auto didn't immediately respond to Benzinga's request for comment.
Li Auto has also restructured its internal teams, with the autonomous driving team now a part of the software team, the report said. The company had outlined an $836 million investment in AI last year.
Robotics And Automakers
The news comes as automakers and tech companies are scaling up robotics and autonomous driving efforts. In the auto sector, Elon Musk-led Tesla Inc. (NASDAQ:TSLA), as well as Xpeng Inc. (NYSE:XPEV), have emerged as key players in the robotics race.
Tesla recently announced during its earnings call that the company would unveil the third-generation Optimus robot this year and sales could begin in 2027. Musk has, on multiple occasions, touted the robot as a means to enable universal high income.
Meanwhile, Xpeng CEO He Xiaopeng recently shared that the company's humanoid robot IRON would enter production in the latter half of this year amid a push towards Robotaxis and robotics.
Elsewhere, Hyundai Motor Group-backed robotics company Boston Dynamics also unveiled its Atlas humanoid robot at the Consumer Electronics Show (CES) 2026, which could be deployed at the automaker's factories in the future as the technology develops.
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