On May 20, SAIC Motor Corp and Audi jointly announced that the two parties have formally signed a cooperation agreement to jointly develop a number of new high-end intelligent electric vehicles for their joint venture SAIC Audi, as well as to jointly develop the Advanced Digitized Platform, following the signing of a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) to deepen strategic cooperation in July last year.

In a statement, SAIC said Audi has strong product definition, vehicle development and engineering capabilities in premium models, while SAIC has industry-leading smart electric innovation technology.

SAIC and Audi are combining their resources to jointly develop a range of EV models. Audi and SAIC will develop models based on a new architecture called Advanced Digitized Platform, which will enable Audi to reduce time to market by more than 30%," the Germany legacy marque said in a statement.

The new jointly developed models will be equipped with the industry's best hardware and software, with the world's best electrical performance and smoother, more user-friendly intelligent interaction, according to SAIC.

The first of three electric vehicle models based on the new platform is due to hit the market in 2025.