Chinese technology companies are paving the way for a world that will be powered by electric motors rather than gas-guzzling engines. It is a decisively 21st-century approach not just to solve its own energy problems, but also to sell batteries and other electric products to everyone else. Canada is its newest buyer of EVs; in a rebuke of Mr. Trump, its prime minister, Mark Carney, lowered tariffs on the cars as part of a new trade deal.

Though Americans have been slow to embrace electric vehicles, Chinese households have learned to love them. In 2025, 54 percent of new cars sold in China were either battery-powered or plug-in hybrids. That is a big reason that the country’s oil consumption is on track to peak in 2027, according to forecasts from the International Energy Agency. And Chinese E.V makers are setting records — whether it’s BYD’s sales (besting Tesla by battery-powered vehicles sold for the first time last year) or Xiaomi’s speed (its cars are setting records at major racetracks like Nürburgring in Germany).

  • InFerNo@lemmy.ml
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    5 hours ago

    There was even a car that charged itself with solar, they only ran out of money because there was little interest for an unknown new brand

    • RamRabbit@lemmy.world
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      3 hours ago

      The cars with solar panels on them are a gimmick. There isn’t enough surface area on a normal car to meaningfully charge the battery.

      • Bytemeister@lemmy.world
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        2 hours ago

        I think you would be surprised. The problem really comes from the car not being a good shape to put solar panels on. I did the math a while back, and I only needed 200w of panels to cover my weekly driving.

    • SaveTheTuaHawk@lemmy.ca
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      4 hours ago

      There was never a car that charged itself with solar because it’s practically impossible unless you put the car on a turntable at the equator in July.