Porsche CEO eyes cooperation with China tech giants to bolster sales

Bloomberg

Porsche AG is exploring joint projects with Chinese technology giants including Tencent Holdings, Alibaba Group Holding Ltd and Baidu Inc to expand digital offerings in its largest market and bolster sales.
Country-specific features for voice recognition, navigation and integration of the ubiquitous WeChat messaging service will be developed locally, Porsche Chief Executive Officer Oliver Blume said in an interview in Shanghai this week. The manufacturer also signed an agreement to expand its research cooperation with Tongji University.
“We want to have the right partnerships in place in each individual region,” Blume said. “It’s a misconception to believe all this can be developed in Germany.”
The move builds on efforts by Volkswagen AG’s most profitable brand to cater to the Chinese, who overwhelmingly use Alibaba-backed AutoNavi and Tencent’s WeChat instead of Google Maps and Whatsapp.
China’s emergence as the world’s largest electric-car market also gives it a key role for Porsche’s plan to boost its lineup of fully and partly battery-powered vehicles. The company’s first all-electric model, the Taycan, is due to come out later this year and will be followed by a more spacious Cross Turismo version.
Other China-specific features in the works include interior illumination or softer suspension to meet local tastes. But despite the country’s growing importance, Porsche seeks to maintain a balanced global sales footprint to avoid becoming too dependent on one market, Blume said. North America, China and Europe each account for a third of global deliveries.