Photo/provided by BMW

BMW Group announced on April 9 that the BMW Next Era Concept Car will debut at the Beijing International Auto Show, which will open on April 25.

"The New Era is not just a car or a specific concept, but a redefinition of the BMW brand, and it will be ‘more BMW' than ever before," said Oliver Zipse, Chairman of the Board of Management of BMW Group.

According to the information, both the BMW Next Era Concept Car and the BMW New Era X Concept Car adopt a medium-sized concept. The two concept cars show the core features of BMW's two future product lines: electrification, digitization and circular sustainability. The new design language and technologies showcased by the concept cars will be applied to all future BMW product lines.

According to the plan, the first new-era production model will be launched in the global market next year, and will be put into production in Shenyang in 2026. The product lineup will be expanded to 6 models within 24 months.

It is worth mentioning that BMW is taking the "Next Era" as an opportunity to continue investing in China and continuously improve its innovation capabilities in China. At the same time, it is further upgrading its production system to prepare for the landing of "Next Era" products in China two years later.

For example, in terms of research and development, BMW has continuously upgraded its research and development system in China. At present, it has established the largest and most complete research and development network outside of Germany in China, with the ability to develop the entire process of automobiles and develop full-stack intelligent networked car software.

In the past three years, the number of BMW's R&D team in China has tripled, and it currently has more than 3,000 R&D and digital talents. BMW's R&D and design team in China is deeply involved in many key tasks of BMW's Next Era models. The results of the Chinese market will become a highlight of the new generation models.

In terms of production, BMW is promoting the BMW sixth-generation power battery project and upgrading and transforming the existing plant in Shenyang. The sixth-generation power battery project, which follows the BMW iFACTORY production strategy, has a total investment of 10 billion yuan, and its main construction has been completed.

"Looking to the future, we are moving towards the 'Next Era'. Through the new generation of BMW models, we want to convey that there is no so-called new or old in the industry and ‘Sheer Driving Pleasure’ is always an intrinsic part of the BMW brand." Zipse said, "China is one of BMW's most important strategic markets. We will continue to invest in China and continuously expand our layout in China."