Company accounts for 40.7% of the global battery sector for electric vehicles and profits more than the 7 largest Chinese brands
At an auto show in Beijing in April, one of the most striking scenes was that of Robin Zeng Yuqun, founder of (Contemporary Amperex Technology), walking around the event.
Over the course of 2 days, he visited the stands of at least 23 automakers, including oea, as well as Chinese EV (electric vehicle) startups such as Li Auto and Nio. In many of them, he was met in person by presidents and senior executives eager to showcase their latest models in the hope of securing the support of the world’s largest maker of electric vehicle batteries.
The scene illustrates how the Chinese battery giant turned years of aggressive investment and technological leadership into unprecedented influence over the global auto industry. This influence has allowed CATL to capture a disproportionate share of profits across the electric vehicle supply chain, boosting its market value to nearly 1.84 trillion yuan ($270 billion) as of May 18, the largest on China’s Nasdaq-like ChiNext index.
For automakers, however, the rise of CATL has been a double-edged sword. The company’s scale and brand recognition make its products hard to abandon, even as its growing ambitions in battery replacement and adjacent businesses push it deeper into automaker territory.
In response, many have adopted multi-supplier strategies or invested in their own battery production — safeguards against a partner that has become too big to ignore and too consolidated to be completely replaced.
THE RISE OF A SUPERSUPPLIER
In the history of the automotive industry, few suppliers have exerted this level of influence over both automakers and car buyers, according to a source at a Chinese auto company. Not even Robert Bosch GmbH, the largest traditional auto parts supplier in the world, “could influence consumer purchasing decisions like CATL”said the source.
Part of CATL’s advantage lies in its early investment in electric vehicle batteries. A former executive at a multinational auto parts supplier said developing batteries requires huge, long-term capital investments before producing a return.
While many automakers have tried to develop battery technologies in-house, most are still far behind CATL in terms of investment.
Furthermore, CATL has already spent years dealing with technical and safety issues, whereas automakers entering the battery market today “will likely have to repeat many of the same costly mistakes.”said the source.
As consumers increasingly associate CATL with safety and quality, automakers have found it difficult to switch to cheaper battery suppliers without risking falling sales, industry experts told Caixin.
That pressure has intensified as China’s auto industry faces a prolonged price war and weak demand, factors that have eroded profitability. Industry average profit margins fell to an all-time low of 4.1% in 2025 and further declined to 2.9% in the first two months of 2026, according to the China Passenger Vehicle Association.
A purchasing officer at a Chinese automaker said CATL’s production scale allows it to manufacture batteries at a lower cost than most in-house operations, while offering superior product quality.
CATL’s marketing has also become a huge advantage. According to him, when the purchasing team proposes switching to lower-cost suppliers, the sales team often resists, worried that consumers will perceive the vehicles as being of lower quality. “Once you use CATL batteries, it is very difficult to stop”he declared.
In recent years, the company has stepped up its marketing efforts in a bid to transform itself into a consumer-facing brand, spreading ads across airports and high-speed train stations, building a plaza in the southwestern Chinese metropolis of Chengdu to showcase vehicles powered by its batteries and, this month, launching an online database that allows consumers to check which models use CATL products.
The strategy appears to be paying off.
CATL accounted for 40.7% of global high-power battery installations in the first quarter of 2026, ranking 1st in the world, according to South Korea’s SNE Research. In China, its share of high-power battery installations reached 47.4% in the first 4 months of the year, according to the China Automotive Battery Innovation Alliance.
The company’s financial performance has also become remarkable. CATL reported a net profit of 72.2 billion yuan in 2025, approximately equal to the combined profit of 5 major Chinese automakers: , , , and .
In the 1st quarter of 2026, CATL achieved an additional profit of 20.7 billion yuan, surpassing the combined profit of 7 Chinese automakers, including aea, and having a net profit approximately 6 times that of the quarter.
EXPANDING BEYOND BATTERIES
To further expand its influence, CATL is going beyond batteries and investing in infrastructure, quickly building replacement networks where drivers can swap out dead batteries in minutes.
CATL has built more than 1,300 stations across China by 2025 as part of its long-term plan to expand the network to 30,000 stations. The company partnered with Baic (Beijing Automotive Group) and Chery to build the infrastructure, as well as working with Baic, Guangzhou Automobile and a joint venture majority-owned by SAIC Motor to develop compatible vehicle models. Buyers of these models can choose to lease the batteries separately, reducing the initial cost of purchasing a vehicle.
A person familiar with the company said CATL’s strong cash reserves give it the ability to build a self-sustaining commercial system around its battery assets.
For automakers, partnering with CATL could reduce capital spending and accelerate growth in electric vehicle sales, but it could also mean giving up greater control over customer services and operations, the source said.
CATL also explored expansion into adjacent sectors. THE Caixin has learned that the company considered acquiring Huawei’s “digital energy” business, which includes propulsion systems for electric vehicles, ultra-fast charging and energy storage operations, although negotiations appeared to have stalled earlier this year due to differences in valuation.
Still, automakers are looking for ways to maintain bargaining power.
Many now use multi-supplier strategies, reserving CATL batteries for models premiumwhile purchasing batteries for lower-end vehicles from other suppliers. Others continue to invest in their own battery production as a form of protection.
Li Auto, for example, formed a battery joint venture with Sunwoda Electronic in October last year and plans to put the factory into operation later this year. Geely has also maintained a balance between self-produced batteries, joint ventures and external purchases, CEO Gan Jiayue told Caixin.
Some industry sources have warned that close ties with CATL do not guarantee success. An example is Avatr, a brand premium of electric vehicles from Changan Automobile, supported by Huawei and CATL, which has faced difficulties in conquering a significant market since its launch.
In April, Changan announced plans to integrate the research and supply chains of its two new energy vehicle brands, including Avatr, in an effort to reduce costs by up to 30%.
While CATL currently holds significant influence in the electric vehicle market, that balance could shift as industry consolidation accelerates and weaker automakers are eliminated, allowing surviving automakers to regain some of their bargaining power, an automotive industry source said.
This report was originally in English by Caixin Global on May 22, 2026. It was translated and republished by Poder360 under mutual content sharing agreement.
