Key Highlights

  • Automakers including BYD, Changan, and Chery accounted for nearly 63% of the global electric vehicle market in 2025, while Chinese battery makers held close to 70% of the global market.
  • Global companies including Apple, Ford, Volkswagen, and Stellantis have turned to Chinese firms for AI, battery, and EV technology.
  • An IDC survey of European companies found security, compliance, and performance, rather than cost, were the top reasons for adopting Chinese AI models.
  • Analysts expect resistance to Chinese technology to remain strongest in advanced semiconductors, cybersecurity, and defense-related applications.

Global Companies Increasingly Source Technology From China

Global companies are increasingly turning to Chinese technology providers across artificial intelligence, electric vehicle batteries, and automotive software, even as Washington has expanded efforts to curb Beijing's technological ambitions. Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) has partnered with Alibaba and Baidu for AI services in China, while Ford Motor Co. (NYSE:F) has turned to CATL for battery technology at a $3.5 billion plant in Michigan. Volkswagen has partnered with Xpeng on smart EV development, and Stellantis has expanded its Partnership with Leapmotor on EV production. Analysts describe the shift as a broader structural change, noting that global businesses increasingly source capability from Chinese firms rather than treating China primarily as a sales market.

China Holds Dominant Positions Across Key Technology Sectors

Chinese automakers including BYD, Changan, and Chery accounted for nearly 63% of the global electric vehicle market in 2025, while battery makers including CATL, BYD, CALB, and Gotion held close to 70% of the global battery market, according to Counterpoint Research. Analysts point to cost, Manufacturing scale, supply-chain depth, and innovation speed as key drivers behind the continued engagement of global companies with Chinese suppliers. The integration is particularly advanced in EV batteries, where analysts say switching suppliers has become a multi-year undertaking involving extensive engineering and recertification, rather than a straightforward procurement decision.

Artificial Intelligence Emerges as Next Frontier for Adoption

The trend is beginning to extend into artificial intelligence, where increasingly capable Chinese models are challenging assumptions that adoption is driven primarily by lower cost. An IDC survey of European companies found that security and compliance requirements, along with superior performance, rather than cost, were the top reasons cited for adopting Chinese AI models. Chinese firms including Alibaba and DeepSeek have focused on open-source models, making them more accessible to developers globally compared with proprietary offerings from US labs. Analysts said US restrictions on advanced semiconductors have, in some respects, accelerated Chinese domestic innovation, though resistance to Chinese technology is expected to remain strongest in advanced chips, cybersecurity, and defense-related applications, with adoption patterns varying significantly by sector going forward.