The 500 km/h speed barrier has been broken. BYD's electric hypercar, the Yangwang U9 Xtreme, became the first production vehicle to achieve this feat, reaching 503.17 km/h on a road in the Al Dhafra region of the United Arab Emirates. The Chinese automaker chose to celebrate this achievement in Abu Dhabi, inviting guests and international media to witness the new record.
BYD Executive Vice President Li Ke attended the event, and media conducted an exclusive interview with her during the celebration. The interview focused on the speed record while also touching on the group's strategy, the future of luxury brands, and BYD's acquisition interest in Maserati, which now appears to have been shelved.
On this closed test road, the driver piloting the Yangwang U9 Xtreme to the record was German driver Marc Basseng, who had previously set the German record of 496.22 km/h. This result earned BYD two Guinness World Records in one go: one for the overall production car record and another for the pure electric production car record, both achieved in a single sprint. However, in Li Ke's view, this result may not be the end point.
"For me there is always a limit, but when I think of our engineers, honestly, I don't know what they are still conceiving," she said with a smile. "They always want to take on new challenges and set new records." The possibility of pushing for even higher speeds remains, but she was unwilling to reveal plans in advance. "I think they need a little rest now, and then they will get back to work," she explained.
She noted that choosing Abu Dhabi was no accident. "Here, many impossible things can become reality. The local people and authorities are very open and willing to support ambitious projects." The record attempt required closing a 10-kilometer road and meticulously cleaning the surface, making technical preparation extremely complex. "To achieve a record like this, you need to close the road, clean the surface, and ensure the road conditions are perfect. It's not simple, but here we obtained a favorable environment and the necessary support."
Regarding the group's future, Li Ke was equally cautious. "We launch important technological innovations every year. This year we released ultra-fast charging technology, and next year there will be new results." These new technologies could potentially trickle down some of the tech deployed on the U9 Xtreme to mass-market models. "Technologies like high-voltage architecture can also be used on other BYD models. Some of the innovations we validated in this test will be equipped on production cars in the future."
The interview also revisited earlier rumors about BYD acquiring Maserati. In May last year, the news was highly discussed, and at the time Li Ke said that historic brands like Maserati were "very attractive," but also made clear that no substantive acquisition process had been initiated. When asked about the matter again by media in Abu Dhabi, Li Ke responded: "Perhaps a few years ago we were more interested. But now we have forged our own path, and the direction is right. Moreover, the world's fastest car is now ours... and precisely because of this, the Yangwang brand has successfully established itself, and our cars can be seen more and more on the roads here. People recognize our products, and building our own brand is easier. This choice better fits the future and better leverages the value of our technology."
These remarks indicate that, at least for now, the likelihood of BYD acquiring Maserati is very low. The group prefers to focus on its own brands, starting with Denza and Yangwang. Facing competition from European automakers, she is not worried: "We don't want to compete specifically with any one rival. We want to develop our own technology, build the best possible cars, and achieve things others have not yet accomplished."
Brand recognition remains a challenge, especially in Europe, where prestige in the automotive sector is often deeply tied to brand history. "We want to create surprises, to make people exclaim: unbelievable. This record is the best example. After an event like this, more people will know about Yangwang. We focus on doing our own thing well and don't pay too much attention to competitors' moves."
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