National People's Congress Representative He Xiaopeng: Optimize and Establish Traffic Conduct Standards that Classify and Apply "Human Driving" and "Machine Driving"

During the 2026 National Two Sessions, He Xiaopeng, a delegate of the 14th National People’s Congress and Chairman and CEO of XPeng Motors, submitted three proposals focusing on key areas of technological and industrial innovation: “Suggestions on Accelerating the Transition of Autonomous Driving Technology from L2 to L4 and Improving Regulations and Policies,” “Suggestions on Encouraging the Development and Commercialization of Advanced ‘Edge-Based Brain’ Humanoid Robots,” and “Suggestions on Optimizing Low-Altitude Airspace Management and Tax Policies for the Flying Car Industry.”

The “14th Five-Year Plan” clearly emphasizes cultivating new productive forces and proactively planning for future industries. Low-altitude economy, autonomous driving, and embodied intelligence are now part of the national strategic vision. According to He Xiaopeng, 2026 will not only be a year of continuous technological breakthroughs but also a critical point where institutional support and industry scale need to align. He hopes that scientific and technological achievements can truly move out of laboratories and become accessible realities in city skies, on roads, and within home environments.

In the autonomous driving sector, with the deep application of large models and high computing power, autonomous driving technology is accelerating from a software-defined functionality era toward an AI-driven intelligent era. Technological iteration is significantly speeding up, commercial deployment needs are growing more urgent, and the current “gradual tiered” management framework faces new challenges.

He Xiaopeng recommends: First, maintaining the stable operation of the L2 safety supervision system while promoting the policy shift from L2 to L4, simplifying the intermediate L3 stage. Second, gradually clarifying the registration and passage management system for L4 autonomous vehicles, and promoting their compliant operation nationwide. Third, conducting traffic regulation adaptability assessments to optimize traffic behavior norms suitable for both human and machine driving under safety conditions. Fourth, granting local pilot management rights for L4 unmanned vehicle applications in specific scenarios, allowing some cities with mature basic conditions to pilot L4 applications in low-risk scenarios. This aims to develop replicable and scalable experiences.

Previously, XPeng Motors announced on March 2nd that the second-generation VLA would be officially launched this month. During a group interview after the launch, He Xiaopeng stated, “Within the legal framework today, all assisted driving is L2 unless the government separately approves Robotaxi, freeing human drivers from the driver’s seat. However, we aim to achieve capabilities close to or even surpassing L4 software under current conditions. This is what we are working on, and all our actions follow policy and regulations, which is our most standard understanding.”

In the humanoid robot field, He Xiaopeng suggests advancing breakthroughs and commercialization of high-level intelligent humanoid robot “brain” technology at the edge. Developing architectures for edge-based large models, data collection and synthesis, and computing power requires significant investment. He recommends targeted R&D support policies, such as establishing national-level special R&D funds and strengthening full-chain tax policies, to support and guide the development of high-level intelligent humanoid robots, promote local deployment of large models in humanoid robots, and accelerate technological breakthroughs and commercialization.

At the 2026 Year of the Horse Spring Festival Gala, multiple humanoid robots made prominent appearances, attracting widespread social attention due to their stable motion control and collaborative performance capabilities. Moving from laboratories to the national stage signifies that embodied intelligence is transitioning from a niche technological topic to public awareness, marking a new phase in industry development.

He Xiaopeng mentioned in his proposals that the “14th Five-Year Plan” clearly emphasizes proactive planning for future industries and promoting embodied intelligence as a new economic growth point. The policy framework at the national strategic level has begun to take shape. As the physical carriers of artificial intelligence and the core form of embodied intelligence, humanoid robots are now on the cusp of an explosive period similar to the electric vehicle industry over a decade ago, approaching a critical strategic window from technological validation to large-scale commercial use.

Additionally, He Xiaopeng suggests optimizing low-altitude airspace management and tax policies for the flying car industry. Specific measures include delegating low-altitude airspace management authority, establishing a coordinated management mechanism involving military, government, and civilian sectors; clarifying the tax classification for compliant flying cars based on their core attributes and functions; and implementing phased tax reduction and exemption policies to lower R&D, manufacturing, and market promotion costs, thereby stimulating market demand.