This personnel adjustment involves approximately 1,300 employees from Zeekr and around 100 from Smart.
Geely is accelerating its “One Geely” strategy, with the latest move focusing on consolidating its autonomous driving business.
According to a Stronger Tang report from last night, Zeekr’s Intelligent Driving (ZID) team of about 1,300 employees will be fully integrated into Geely-owned Qianli Technology (Chongqi Qianli Technology Co., Ltd.). Meanwhile, around 100 Smart employees may transfer to either Qianli Technology or the Geely Automotive Research Institute. While work locations and salaries will largely remain unchanged, Smart employees must undergo a new interview process. The Lotus AD team is not included in this round of integration.
Previously, various Geely Group subsidiaries—including Zeekr, Smart, Lotus, ECARX, Geely Automotive Research Institute, and Freetech—pursued independent autonomous driving R&D efforts, leading to inconsistencies in technical paths and duplicated resources.
This restructuring marks Geely’s concentrated reorganization of its scattered autonomous driving teams.
From workforce consolidation to platform unification, Qianli Technology is becoming the central pillar of Geely’s intelligent driving operations.
As early as late June, news broke that Wang Jun, former COO of Huawei’s Automotive BU and president of the intelligent driving solutions product line, had joined Qianli Technology—a clear signal of strategic intent. Just over a month later, Zeekr’s AD team has been fully absorbed. Qianli Technology is no longer just a regular subsidiary but the cornerstone of Geely’s “One Geely” tech integration strategy—potentially comparable to Huawei’s Yinwang Intelligent Technology.
Qianli Technology is not a newly founded company and it’s previously known as Lifan Group. After restructuring in 2020, it was acquired by Geely and co-founded Livan Auto in 2022, targeting B2B mobility markets. In February 2025, Lifan Group was officially renamed Qianli Technology.
In addition, Geely launched the “G-Pilot” advanced autonomous driving system in March this year, aimed at vehicles priced between RMB 150,000 and RMB 500,000 ($21,000–$70,000). This system—backed by Qianli Technology—includes five tiers of autonomous driving from H1 to H9, covering Geely’s mid- and low-end vehicle lines.
The “One Geely” approach is not just about brand consolidation—it’s about R&D centralization.
From the “Taizhou Declaration” emphasizing focused development to this autonomous driving team merger, Geely is accelerating the centralization of its organizational structure and R&D resources.
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