He Xiaopeng Urges Accelerating Autonomous Driving from L2 to L4: Streamline L3, Enable Nationwide Legal Deployment

At the 2026 National Two Sessions, He Xiaopeng, a national deputy to the National People's Congress and Chairman & CEO of XPeng Motors, proposed accelerating the leapfrog development of autonomous driving regulations and technology from Level 2 (L2) to Level 4 (L4). He stated that China is currently at a critical juncture to align institutional support with industrial scale-up, and should leverage its accumulated advantages in L2 to build competitiveness for the L4 era. He made four recommendations: First, while maintaining stable safety oversight for L2 systems, skip the complex L3 transitional phase and directly advance the policy framework for L4. Second, clarify registration and road-use management rules for L4 vehicles to enable their nationwide legal deployment. Third, review and optimize existing traffic laws to establish behavioral standards tailored for "machine-driven" vehicles. Fourth, authorize cities that meet specific readiness criteria to pilot L4 autonomous driving applications for consumer (C-end) use in low-risk scenarios, thereby generating replicable experience.