In a 12 February 2025 interview with Sky News, Xpeng Co-President Brian Hu highlighted the “big opportunity” awaiting Chinese electric vehicle (EV) makers in the UK. Speaking at Xpeng’s launch event in London, Hu noted that a lack of tariffs, relatively low sticker prices and a burgeoning EV market puts Chinese brands at a particular advantage.
Xpeng is the latest of several Chinese brands to open up shop in the UK, offering a single model—its G6 medium SUV—at an entry price of £40,000 (US$49,900). The G6 is intended to compete with Tesla’s Model Y, but at a £7,000 lower price tag. Other Chinese EV brands to have entered the UK market include BYD, Leapmotor, Omodo and the now-SAIC-owned MG. “Having no tariffs allows the UK market to receive the best products from around the world. And we are certainly not focused on quantity, we focus on quality,” said Hu.
The UK became Europe’s biggest EV market in 2024 with 381,870 sales according to data from the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders, comprising 19% of the total car market and representing a 21.4% increase over 2023. Germany, formerly the region’s biggest EV market, saw its sales plummet by 27.4% to just shy of 381,000 due to the abrupt end of its tax incentives.
“We see a very, very big opportunity because we see the market is growing very healthily compared to the rest of Europe, and I think you can see continued growth,” Hu stated. “And we actually see UK customers embracing new technologies. For example, Tesla is very successful here, so we want to also bring the latest and most innovative technologies from China in our vehicles.”
Hu also dismissed the concerns around national security that have become part and parcel whenever Chinese brands enter Western markets. “As a company currently operating in 30-plus countries, we adhere to the most stringent data and privacy rules in every market that we enter,” he drove home.
However, his response as to whether Xpeng could resist a demand for data from the Chinese state government was less unwavering: “Well, right now, I don’t think that there is any demand for that. But I think as a company we will do whatever it takes to protect our customers.”
