Mercedes-Benz to invest US$2B in China

Mercedes-Benz Group said it plans to invest more than 14 billion yuan (US$2 billion) with its partners in China to enrich the German auto giant’s product portfolio of passenger and light commercial vehicles in the country.

Visitors are interested in a Mercedes-Benz car at the 2024 Beijing International Automotive Exhibition in April. File Photo

Mercedes-Benz will gradually produce a new all-electric, long wheelbase CLA model tailored for Chinese customers, a new long wheelbase GLE sport utility vehicle developed by its China team, and a new luxury all-electric MPV based on its VAN.EA platform starting from next year, the Stuttgart-based automaker announced Wednesday.

The long wheelbase GLE SUV will be the first model mainly developed by the Chinese team, offering China-exclusive comfort features and advanced intelligent technologies, Mercedes-Benz said.

In addition, the Mercedes-Benz Operating System, or MB.OS, will debut next year with the new MMA platform models, offering a new MBUX Virtual Assistant powered by three-dimensional graphics technology and large language models (LLMs), as well as the luxury brand’s first HD-mapless point-to-point full-scenario intelligent driving system, the company said.