Across China: Sci-tech tour inspires German youth to promote Germany-China automotive cooperation

Niklas Klingel (L) and Alexander Kuch (R) pose for a photo with a staff member of Guizhou's PIX Moving at the company's automotive manufacturing plant in Guiyang, southwest China's Guizhou Province, July 4, 2025. (Xinhua/Zhou Xuanni)

GUIYANG, July 16 (Xinhua) -- As Niklas Klingel stood inside the PIX Moving automotive manufacturing plant, watching the automated minibus frames take shape on the assembly line, his eyes sparkled with excitement. The 24-year-old German eagerly engaged in a lively technology discussion with the person in charge.

Recently, as one of the invited guests for the Eco Forum Global Guiyang 2025, he participated in the six-day trip hosted by Tsinghua University and Guizhou Province, which titled "Opportune China, Youth Talks -- 2025 Global Youth Dialogue", and fifteen international youths participated in the journey.

They explored Guizhou's innovative breakthroughs in various fields, including big data, autonomous vehicles, and the construction of the world's highest bridges.

Klingel expressed his joy of back to China again and said that his experiences in Guizhou were reshaping his understanding of the global automotive landscape.

Parallel to his Master of Science in Politics and Technology at Technical University of Munich, he had been also working as a financial consultant. With the global EV vehicle's booming development, he is now transitioning from traditional financial consulting to the field of automotive safety consulting.

"The prosperity of China in electric vehicles and autonomous driving is evident, but what touched me more is their continuous innovation in autonomous driving technology," Klingel added in a later interview.

In order to learn more about consumers and the global market, he furthered his studies in Tsinghua University's School of Social Sciences as a visiting student in 2023, focusing on consumer behavior and public organization management.

Klingel went back to Germany after he finished his studies in China. He is currently providing safety consulting services and quality management training for German car manufacturers like BMW.

During his visit to the PIX Moving factory, Klingel inquired in detail about the company's breakthroughs in autonomous driving algorithm optimization and sensor fusion. "Their algorithm integration innovations and 3D printing intelligent manufacturing capability are eye-catching and should be learned from by German automotive enterprises."

He particularly emphasized that the advancements made by Chinese companies in the commercialization of autonomous driving offers valuable insights for traditional automotive powerhouses. He views this technological complementarity as an opportunity for fostering cooperation between the two countries.

In regard to the competition and cooperation between the automotive industries of China and Germany, Klingel has a borderless industrial vision. He believes that international competition is not a zero-sum game but an accelerator of innovation that creates boundless opportunities. This positive interaction between the two countries has the potential to create an upward spiral of innovation.

"Ultimately, it is the global consumers who benefit when German precision manufacturing meets Chinese smart technology, and we look forward to witnessing the most exciting innovations and transformations in automotive history."

"There is a deep foundation of research in autonomous driving at both the Technical University of Munich and Tsinghua University. In the future, the two institutions can collaborate on research and innovation in the fields of autonomous vehicles and EV, thereby promoting the integrated development of the automotive industries in both countries," said Klingel, highlighting the broad prospects for specific cooperation paths between the two countries.

"The two countries could establish a regular delegation exchange mechanism, set up more cross-border offices, and build technology transfer platforms that integrate Germany's quality management system with China's speed of innovation," Klingel explained.

"From Munich to Guiyang, I see not only the undulating mountains but also the synchronized beats of innovation from two automotive powerhouses," Klingel said. Before concluding his visit to Guizhou, Klingel expressed his enthusiasm for initiating collaborative discussions between Guizhou's autonomous driving firm and traditional German automotive companies.

"I look forward to having more discussions with Guizhou's autonomous driving enterprise, considering the potential large-scale commercial deployment of autonomous vehicles from Guizhou in Germany," Klingel added. ■

Niklas Klingel visits Guizhou's Long March Cultural Digital Art Museum in Guiyang, southwest China's Guizhou Province, July 6, 2025. (Xinhua/Zhou Xuanni)