From China with love: LeEco to develop electric cars with James Bond car maker Aston Martin
British luxury car maker Aston Martin has agreed to team up with Chinese entertainment portal LeEco, formerly known as Letv, to make electric cars, the companies said this week.
The first vehicle from the new joint venture will be called the RapidE, an all-electric version of Aston Martin’s Rapide S sports car, the auto maker said in a statement. It is expected to hit the market in 2018.
“We hope that, by strengthening our collaboration with Aston Martin, we will roll out future models with premium specifications and of the same high quality that Aston Martin is known for,” said Ding Lei, vice chairman of LeEco’s own electric car venture SEE Plan (Super Electric Ecosystem).
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The latest deal marks a big step forward in the two companies’ partnership, which was forged last year when LeEco began providing in-car entertainment systems for the Rapide S.
Further down the road, the joint venture will churn out new models for both companies’ own brands, according to the statement.
The financial terms of the deal were not disclosed.
This is not LeEco’s first foray into the electric car market, however: it backed Faraday Future, an American company touted as an emerging rival to Tesla, at an event in Silicon Valley last year.
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Moreover, China is embracing electric cars with the full backing of the central government as it looks to clean energy and other ways to reduce the smog epidemic seen in many of its big cities.
It announced last autumn that it was ramping up subsidies to accelerate the construction of recharging stations. The goal: to have sufficient infrastructure in place by 2020 to handle 5 million plug-in vehicles.
To cover all bases, the nation is also taking a leading role in making electric batteries.
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its first Formula E race in October, as a pioneer in the adoption of EVs.
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LeEco started out as an online video-streaming company and evolved into a many-faceted group consisting of entertainment, internet and consumer electronics businesses. It entered the electric car business in January 2015 when it formed SEE Plan.
It has also taken a gamble on Faraday Future, which hired a number of former Tesla employees, including the latter’s director of vehicle and chassis design, and director of manufacturing.
The start-up announced plans to build a US$10 billion factory in Las Vegas last year, before it released a futuristic 1,000 horsepower concept car at the Consumer Electronics Show in that city last month.
LeEco is not the only technology company entering the electric car business with the help of traditional car makers.
China’s social media giant Tencent Holding has partnered with Taiwan manufacturer Hon Hai Precision Industry and Chinese car retailer and manufacturer Harmony Auto Holding to create a joint-venture in electric cars.
Search engine company Baidu had received help from BMW, while e-commerce giant Alibaba Group collaborated with Shanghai Automotive Industry Corporation(SAIC).
