A Decade of Independent R&D, GAC is Fortunate to Have AION

At the launch event for the 2027 AION i60, Yang Long declared, “AION will always be OK.” The statement underscored his confidence in GAC’s manufacturing capabilities and further positioned GAC AION as one of the most representative brands within GAC Group.

Since its establishment, GAC AION has carried the responsibility of driving GAC Group’s transition toward new-energy vehicles. Its first model, the AION S, was built on GAC’s second-generation dedicated EV platform. As one of the early adopters of a dedicated EV architecture among Chinese brands, it marked an important turning point in the industry’s transition from ICE-based platforms adapted for EVs to purpose-built electric vehicles.

Today, thanks to its level of ride comfort comparable to that of the BYD Han, a popular model in China’s ride-hailing market, the AION S has become one of the representative vehicles in the ride-hailing sector, raising the bar for everyday mobility.

After 29 years of development, GAC Group has drawn on its experience working with joint-venture partners such as GAC Honda and GAC Toyota to establish the GAC Production System (GPS), a localized lean manufacturing system that has become one of the key foundations of GAC’s manufacturing quality.

As GAC AION rapidly expanded, GAC Group also accelerated the development of its own technology and industrial ecosystem. From dedicated EV platforms and the Magazine Battery to amorphous-alloy electric drive systems, and from INPOW batteries and RAPOW electric motors to GAC Energy, the group has gradually built an industrial chain covering the core technologies and infrastructure of the new-energy vehicle sector.

According to sales data released by GAC Group, GAC AION sold 33,694 vehicles in August, up 38.56% year on year. Sales have increased year on year for six consecutive months. From January through August, cumulative sales reached 244,080 units, an increase of 58.37% from a year earlier, making AION one of the most prominent achievements of GAC Group’s three-year Panyu Action.

Now, after a decade of accumulation, GAC AION is entering another important phase of development.

Under GAC Group’s three-year Panyu Action, GAC AION has undergone a fundamental transformation. Within the new brand structure, the AION i60 became the first production model based on GAC’s Xingyuan range-extended platform. Monthly sales have exceeded 10,000 units for six consecutive months, keeping the model near the top of China’s A-segment new-energy SUV market. In the 10 months since its launch, cumulative sales have approached 100,000 units. Despite the constant arrival of new competitors, the AION i60 has continued to deliver the kind of market performance associated with a breakout model.

In intelligent driving, GAC has begun working with WeRide to develop a new generation of advanced driving technology. Its one-stage end-to-end autonomous driving system shares technology roots with L4 Robotaxi systems and is being deployed across GAC’s new-energy vehicle lineup. The AION N60, the first model to feature this technology, attracted considerable market attention immediately after launch with its standard advanced driver-assistance system and impressive driving performance.

The AION N60 has brought lidar-equipped advanced driver assistance down into the RMB 100,000 price range. It has led the market in monthly sales for four consecutive months and topped the sales rankings among lidar-equipped SUVs priced between RMB 100,000 and RMB 130,000. After winning the Guiyang round of the intelligent-driving competition, the AION N60 went on to secure both the qualifying and final titles in Shenyang, becoming the only model in the entire competition to score more than 100 points. With the campaign slogan “Taking on Every Road, Across the Country,” the AION N60 has established a strong position in intelligent driving among vehicles in the RMB 100,000 segment.

At a time when Huawei’s Qiankun Intelligent Driving system has become a common reference point among Chinese state-owned automakers, GAC AION continues to pursue proprietary development with its own brand characteristics—from the core systems of the intelligent cockpit to advanced driver assistance. The company is retaining control over the development of its core technologies rather than relying entirely on external technology providers.

GAC AION is also preparing for another wave of new-product launches. Following the debut of the first model in its new Ray series, the Ray7, a new large six-seat SUV and a new-energy MPV will also be introduced in succession.

More importantly, the electric-vehicle technologies developed by GAC AION are increasingly being leveraged to support the new-energy transition of GAC Toyota and GAC Honda, helping different subsidiaries of GAC Group build greater collective strength in the new-energy vehicle market.

The strong market performance of the GAC Toyota bZ3X and bZ7 also demonstrates, from another perspective, the technological capabilities and confidence built by GAC AION in the new-energy sector. These capabilities could also become an important source of industrial synergies for GAC Honda’s own new-energy transition.

From production lines at a globally recognized new-energy vehicle “lighthouse factory” to the new Xingyuan range-extended platform, GAC AION has also become an important foundation for AISTALAND, the GAC brand developed in cooperation with Huawei’s Qiankun Intelligent technology.

Facing simultaneous pressure from the ICE vehicle market and the joint-venture segment, GAC Group has gone through a painful and prolonged period of adjustment in recent years. GAC AION, however, has shouldered much of the group’s pressure to transition toward new-energy vehicles and ultimately managed to stage a difficult recovery from the bottom.

In China, GAC AION has become one of the most recognizable GAC Group brands across social media platforms, giving GAC a visible presence in an increasingly fragmented and competitive traffic-driven digital environment.

Overseas, the GAC AION plant in Thailand became GAC Group’s first overseas vehicle manufacturing plant. Models such as the AION V, AION S and AION UT have also become new growth drivers for GAC’s international sales.

At the launch of the 2027 AION i60, Yang Long said, “GAC puts care into what people can see, and conscience into what people cannot see.”

That is the confidence behind GAC AION—and one of the foundations that has enabled GAC to maintain its footing amid intense competition across the automotive market.

The bZ3X has shown the enormous potential that can emerge when GAC’s technology is combined with Toyota’s quality standards. The AION i60, meanwhile, offers a glimpse into the underlying capabilities of GAC’s manufacturing system.

Whether it is GAC Toyota, AISTALAND or GAC Trumpchi, the path taken by GAC AION demonstrates that amid intense competition in the new-energy vehicle era, the factors that ultimately support the long-term development of an automotive brand remain technology, manufacturing, quality and user reputation.

For GAC, AION’s decade of development represents more than the growth of a single brand. It also represents an important accumulation of technological and manufacturing capabilities during GAC’s transition toward new-energy vehicles.

The key question for the next stage may be whether GAC can translate these accumulated capabilities into stronger competitiveness across its different brands. That, perhaps more than anything else, is what will be worth watching in GAC’s next chapter.