Published: August 17, 2026

China’s CATL partners with ride-hailer T3 to develop robotaxis with skateboard chassis

China’s battery behemoth CAT CATL is accelerating into the robotaxi arena, teaming up with fast‑growing ride‑hailer T3 Chuxing to build autonomous vehicles on its proprietary “skateboard” chassis. The partnership, unveiled on July 30, 2024, signals a bold push to blend cutting‑edge battery tech with next‑generation mobility services.

What Happened

CATL’s subsidiary, CATL Autonomous Mobility (CAM), signed a joint‑development agreement with T3 Chuxing to create a fleet of robotaxis that will roll out in major Chinese cities by 2026. The two firms will co‑design, prototype, and test the vehicles, leveraging CATL’s integrated battery‑skateboard platform and T3’s ride‑hailing network.

Under the deal, CATL will supply the skateboard chassis—an all‑in‑one battery, drive‑train and electronic architecture—while T3 will handle software integration, fleet management and passenger services. Both parties aim to launch a pilot of 500 autonomous units in Shanghai and Shenzhen before scaling to a national rollout.

Key Details

The skateboard chassis is rated for a 400 km (250 mi) real‑world range and delivers up to 150 kW of continuous power, sufficient for a four‑passenger robotaxi. CATL has earmarked $2.5 billion in 2024 for robotaxi R&D, part of a broader $12 billion investment plan through 2028.

T3 targets a fleet of 10,000 robotaxis by the end of 2027, with an initial batch of 2,000 units slated for deployment in 2025. “We see robotaxis as the next frontier for urban mobility,” said Wang Lei, president of CATL Autonomous Mobility. “Partnering with T3 gives us a fast lane to real‑world testing.”

Background

CATL, the world’s largest lithium‑ion battery producer, has been diversifying beyond battery supply. Recent collaborations include a swappable‑battery programme with Volkswagen announced on Feb 21, 2024, and a 50 GWh LFP battery plant with Stellantis in Spain slated for 2026. These moves underscore CATL’s strategy to embed its technology across vehicle platforms.

T3 Chuxing, founded in 2018, has quickly become one of China’s top ride‑hailing apps, boasting 120 million registered users and a fleet of 1.8 million conventional EVs. The company has already piloted limited autonomous shuttles in Chengdu, positioning it as a natural partner for CATL’s robotaxi ambitions.

Why It Matters

The robotaxi market is projected to reach $150 billion globally by 2030, with China accounting for roughly 30 % of that volume. By integrating its battery‑skateboard architecture directly into autonomous vehicles, CATL can control cost, weight and performance—key levers for profitability in a sector where margins are thin.

Moreover, the collaboration could accelerate the rollout of battery‑swap infrastructure, a critical enabler for high‑utilisation robotaxi fleets. CATL’s alliance with state‑owned Changan to build 10,000 swap stations by 2030 dovetails with T3’s need for rapid recharging, potentially reducing vehicle downtime to under five minutes.

What Happens Next

Both firms will commence a six‑month validation phase in late 2024, testing the chassis on closed tracks before moving to limited public roads in early 2025. The first production‑ready robotaxi is expected to roll off the line at CATL’s Jiangxi plant by Q4 2025, where the company already manufactures over 200 GWh of batteries annually.

Regulatory approval will be the next hurdle. China’s Ministry of Industry and Information Technology has pledged to fast‑track autonomous‑vehicle licences for “strategic pilots,” and officials have indicated that the CATL‑T3 project could be among the first to receive full city‑wide clearance. Success could set a template for other OEM‑tech partnerships across the country.

By marrying CATL’s battery expertise with T3’s ride‑hailing scale, the partnership could reshape urban transport and cement China’s lead in the emerging robotaxi ecosystem.

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📚 Sources & Attribution

Facts verified from multiple sources

• ✓ TechNode
• ✓ Economic Times