Day: July 21, 2025

• Last year, over 17 million EVs were produced globally, and China made most of them.
• Our reviewer drove the XPeng X9, a seven-seater EV minivan, around Singapore for three days.
• The back seats felt like business class, and it made him rethink what a people mover can be.

Chinese EVs are coming in every shape and size — including luxury minivans.

I spent three days driving the XPeng X9 around Singapore to find out what this futuristic people-mover is all about. I was seriously impressed.

XPeng, founded in 2014 and based in Guangzhou, isn’t just making EVs — it’s also dabbling in flying cars and robotics, making it one of the more ambitious players among a cutthroat global battle for transportation dominance.

“Competition in 2025 will be fiercer than ever,” XPeng’s CEO, He Xiaopeng, wrote in a letter to employees last year. He added that the next two years mark the “elimination round.”

In 2024, over 17 million EVs were produced globally, a 25% jump from 2023. Over 70% of them were made in China, per the International Energy Agency.

As of March 2025, XPeng is selling cars across Asia and Europe, with plans to expand to the Middle East and Africa.

The X9 was inspired by the CEO’s experience balancing family life with his role as an entrepreneur and a “hands-on father,” Alex Tang, the head of XPeng’s international sales and service division, told Business Insider in a statement.

“He envisioned a vehicle that drives with the agility of an SUV, carries the sleek silhouette of a coupe, and delivers the comfort and practicality of a premium MPV,” Tang said.

On the outside

The seven-seater X9, first released in October 2023, is priced between 359,800 and 419,800 Chinese yuan, or $50,185 and $58,550.

It grabbed my attention right away, mostly because of its shape. Instead of following the usual luxury minivan formula, XPeng gave it a bold, trapezoidal twist.

It feels like the Tesla Cybertruck of the EV multipurpose vehicle world: sharply styled, tech-packed, and built to rethink what a people mover can be. The proportions and lines are spot-on, topped off with sleek 20-inch alloys.

Getting behind the wheel

The X9 is big — really big. At 208 inches long, 78 inches wide, and 70 inches tall, it’s the longest of any Chinese electric minivan on the market. While it’s not the slimmest in width, its overall dimensions still make it one of the most space-efficient in its class. For perspective, it’s even longer than a Mercedes-Benz S-Class.

But the real surprise was how easily it maneuvered into tight parking spots, even parallel ones. XPeng has equipped it with an easy-to-use park assist system.

It can park itself if you want it to. But if you’re like me and prefer doing it yourself, the network of cameras and sensors makes the job stress-free.

The system is named XPilot Parking. While it’s not a function that’s unique to the XPeng, no BYD models — the world’s largest electric vehicle maker — offer the same feature.

Another neat party trick: rear-wheel steering. It gives the X9 an edge in maneuverability — a feature typically reserved for high-end luxury sedans like the BMW 7 Series. It really shines on winding roads or when a hot hatch is tailgating and you need to stay sharp.

XPeng says the X9’s WLTP range exceeds 350 miles on a single charge. I couldn’t validate it, as I only covered 160 miles during the three-day drive.

On the inside

The X9 comes fitted with standard air suspension, which you can set to Comfort, Standard, or Sport for your different driving moods.

I found that for a luxury minivan like this, Sport seemed unnecessary.

The setting stiffens the suspension. While it reduces body roll and improves overall handling, it also transmits more bumps and road imperfections, compromising ride comfort for everyone on board.

This suspension allows drivers to raise or lower the car at the touch of a button on the 17.3-inch touchscreen. Lift it when there’s flooding, or drop it for easier access when passengers are getting in or out. No other EV minivan offers this feature.

The Chinese have really nailed the art of crafting luxurious interiors, and the X9 is no exception.

Many Chinese cars, including the X9, now come standard with massive screens, premium materials like leather and high-quality plastics, and even reclining rear seats with massage functions. Features that were once reserved for top-tier German brands are now common in the latest generation of Chinese vehicles.

One of the coolest touches of XPeng’s minivan: The rear air conditioning vents are seamlessly integrated into the ceiling, like something you’d see in a convention hall.

Ride in the back

A car like the X9 makes calling “shotgun” pointless — the best seats are in the back. A pair of captain’s chairs offers plenty of controls to find your sweet spot, plus a third row that’s honestly the most comfortable and well-cushioned I’ve seen in my 23 years of reviewing cars.

Once again, XPeng shows serious attention to detail: The third row, usually where you stash someone you’d rather not hear yapping the whole ride, is not only easy to access but actually comfortable for adults.

Since this is a luxury minivan, passengers in the back get pampered with perks like a built-in fridge to keep drinks chilled and a 21.4-inch entertainment screen.

And if you’ve got teenagers, you can hook up an Xbox to keep them entertained instead of listening to them confuse you with their Gen Alpha slang.

XPeng’s X9 is packed with all the creature comforts you could want — and then some. This isn’t the kind of minivan millennials and Gen X grew up riding in.

• Aaron Chen lost an internship after bringing up pay, just five days before he was set to fly to NYC.
• The UC Berkeley student went to New York anyway, arriving with no job and no backup plan.
• He hustled through tech events, networked nonstop, and landed a new role in two weeks.

This as-told-to essay is based on a conversation with Aaron Chen, a rising sophomore at UC Berkeley. This interview has been edited for length and clarity. Business Insider has verified Chen’s employment history. The startup that pulled his offer did not respond to a request for comment.

After a few calls with a crypto startup in New York, I was offered a summer internship over email in March. I signed the non-disclosure agreement with them.

I was really happy as that was pretty late for recruitment, and I was stressed. Most upperclassmen got an offer in December.

In June, I hopped on a call with the head of operations to talk about compensation.

I might have asked a little too much, but I left room to negotiate. Product management internships typically range from $40 to $50 per hour in New York. Considering my combined skills in frontend engineering, UX/UI design, and motion graphics, along with my ability to support marketing, I proposed an hourly rate of $45.

Five days before I was set to fly, they replied: “We do not have any budget for this internship, or any additional head count for that matter.”

I wrote in my email that I was open to discussing this, but they did not want to continue this conversation.

I had already booked a flight to New York, paid for rent, and found a roommate to share it with.

I was on a bus crossing the Bay Bridge when the email came in. I sent a goofy selfie to my sister saying, “Guess who’s unemployed now?” But within minutes, reality hit me, and I started crying at the back of the bus.

I called my parents, friends, and roommate. They were like, “Just go to New York and have fun.” They insisted on supporting me in following through, and now I’m here.

Straight off the plane and into networking

I was on my own, and I searched for things to do in New York, specifically in tech.

The first two weeks were pretty rough. I hopped around during New York Tech Week, which began the day I landed. I dropped off my bags and went straight from JFK Airport to IBM’s office, running on zero sleep.

Every day, I juggled different events, met different people, and networked, trying to get my foot in the door and establish myself in the city. I signed up for probably over 60 events in the span of a week.

In the second week, I attended a crypto conference. I met a part-time blockchain builder and part-time professor from Stanford, who offered to circulate my résumé.

By that time, I had already applied to around 50 companies and asked at least 20 people in my network to share my résumé and portfolio, hoping to find anyone who might be hiring — a long shot since it was already June.

Thanks to the Stanford professor and folks in my blockchain club, I interviewed with six companies, and I really connected with a founder from Axal, an Andressen Horowitz-backed crypto startup.

After our first interview, he messaged me at 3 a.m. on a Friday with the files for the take-home assignment. I was already awake, working, so I dove right in. Over the next two days, I pulled all-nighters designing, coding, and engineering the interface.

At the final interview on Monday, I walked him through my design process, code, repository, and everything I built. He offered me the role on the spot.

We went back and forth a bit on compensation, but things went smoothly. I got the official offer in my inbox, and this time, I signed it for real.

I’m their fastest hire ever, from first contact to offer in just four days.

It’s been a chain of networking that put me in the position to even interview for the role.

Everything happening literally within two weeks of me landing in New York with no job, no backup plan, still feels incredibly surreal to me.

Summer motto: I have nothing else to lose

It was really difficult to turn my mindset from being disappointed, anxious, and stressed to “I’ll just take whatever life gives me.”

Accepting and embracing that reality has helped me so much because that allowed me to not withhold any of my energy or hold back when I go to networking events.

I have nothing else to lose — that has been the motto of my summer.

I am so happy I came to New York to meet the people I met and be part of the opportunities I’ve had.

People who are older than me always tell me success comes in different ways, and I’ve always found it so corny. I truly believe that now.