A whopping 70% of all new electric vehicles (EVs) now hail from China, with Shenzhen-headquartered brand BYD far outpacing Tesla  and others in sales, and scaling worldwide operations as a result. It has automakers like Toyota, Honda and Ford panicking about projects and overhauling strategy, with Ford executives saying even three years ago that China was way ahead of the game.

“We have no chance against this,” Honda President and CEO Toshihiro Mibe said upon a visit to a Shanghai parts factory, commenting on its seamless automation across all levels of production. Logistics, procurement and all aspects of the process were so automated, in fact, that he did not spot a single human worker on the supplier’s floor.

Ford and Toyota leaders have expressed similar sentiments regarding Chinese makers’ sheer speed in not just building cars, but designing them. The nation is known for its expedient development of all sorts of products, and its ability to bring vehicles from concept to market in half the time of competitors is one of the more unignorable examples of this.

China’s cheap labour costs, lack of red tape, well-harmonized supply chain, tax rebates and more have also helped to create an unmatchable cost-competitive edge that other industry players are understandably spooked about. And, investors with money on the line have a right to be apprehensive, too.

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