Audi has taken its SAIC tie-up a step further in China, saying the pair will work more closely on future models under the China-only AUDI brand.
In its April 17, media statement, Audi said the expanded agreement now stretches across the full value chain, including R&D, and will bring a dedicated AUDI Innovation & Technology Center in Shanghai run by AUDI AG.
It also said the next chapter starts with four all-new AUDI models on the next-generation Advanced Digitized Platform (ADP).
This is bigger than a single launch or concept reveal. Audi said the AUDI line already began with the E5 Sportback in 2025, with the E7X SUV due to debut at Auto China 2026 and a third model due in 2027.
That gives the brand a clearer shape than it had a year ago, and the latest agreement pushes it further into long-term territory.
The groundwork was laid in May 2024. Audi said then that it would jointly develop new China-specific premium intelligent connected vehicles with SAIC on the Advanced Digitized Platform, initially starting with three BEV models. SAIC said the two companies had formally signed a cooperation agreement to develop multiple high-end intelligent electric vehicles and the ADP platform together.
Audi then made the China strategy more explicit in November 2024 when it launched the new AUDI brand, in capital letters and without the usual four rings. The company said the brand was tailored for China and that the AUDI E concept previewed three production models from mid-2025.
In short, Audi is no longer testing the waters here. It is building a separate China-focused EV and intelligent-car track with SAIC, complete with its own brand badge, model plan and engineering base in Shanghai.
The plan is plainly aimed at buyers who expect faster software development, heavier digital integration and products shaped around Chinese tastes rather than adapted later from elsewhere.
