Long Read: Chinese Auto Industry’s Clean Future

In a series of past interviews with Caixin, auto heavyweight turned policymaker Miao Wei shares his insights on topics ranging from new-energy vehicles to intelligent driving tech

Miao Wei. Photo: AI generated

Miao Wei, 69, is an auto industry heavyweight turned policymaker best known as a pragmatic and quick-minded reformer in China’s political sphere. After graduating from Hefei University of Technology with a major in internal combustion engines in 1982, he spent more than a decade working in the automotive sector.

From 1997 to 1999, Miao helmed the state-owned auto giant Dongfeng Motor Group Co. Ltd. as party secretary and general manager. He later spent a decade as China’s minister of industry and information technology before retiring from the position in 2020. Currently, he serves as vice chairman of the Committee on Economic Affairs, part of the National Committee of the Chinese People’s Political Consultative Conference.

During his stint at the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology, Miao gave three interviews with Caixin in 2014, 2020 and 2024, during which he shared his insights into the formulation of industrial policy, the development of the domestic new-energy vehicle (NEV) sector and intelligent driving technology, and Chinese automakers’ global expansion efforts.

Below is a selection of Miao’s key insights shared during the interviews.

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