XPeng's $300,000 flying car could be lifting off in China by next summer

People in China could be riding in flying cars as soon as next summer, according to the maker of a two-seater with autopilot. Deli Zhao, chief executive of XPeng, said at Lisbon's Web Summit on Tuesday that the $300,000 (£225,000) low-altitude vehicle had already been cleared by China's civil aviation authorities for limited use, with a prototype drawing big crowds at the event. Zhao said it would be ready for recreational users in rural areas and for emergency services in the second half of 2027, after roughly a decade of development that included flying motorbike trials at the company's Guangzhou base.

The machine looks more like a helicopter-style drone than a car: no wheels, a cockpit about the size of a Fiat 500, six battery-powered propellers and a single joystick. It can fly itself to a pre-programmed destination, and Zhao, a trained pilot, claims he can teach anyone to fly it in five minutes. The price includes a six-wheel van roughly the size of a Ford Transit, from which the flyer unfolds — in Zhao's words, 'just like the Transformers'. He credited part of the inspiration to the flying creatures in Harry Potter and the Green Goblin's flying skateboard in the Spider-Man comics. 'The world where everyone can be a captain is about to arrive,' he said.

Scope stays tight for now. It is limited to approved park areas in China and to emergency crews reaching inaccessible spots, with a flight range of 30km (18.6 miles) that Zhao says will soon double by pushing battery energy density to 400 kilowatts per kilogram. It cruises up to 1km above the ground — well under an unpressurised light aircraft like a Cessna. Zhao said nobody has been injured using it, and named divers, surfers, off-roaders and pilots as the first target buyers.

Rivalry is part of the pitch. Elon Musk showed off a flying Tesla last month that twists and flips using high-powered gas blasts, and Zhao dismissed it as 'really hopping or jumping and not really flying', agreeing when asked if it looked like a circus act. 'I'm looking forward to seeing a potential future generation that can actually fly,' he said. XPeng's push rides on Beijing's 'low-altitude economy' drive — drones and flying cars, cargo before people, countryside before cities — with Zhao estimating around 20 Chinese firms are chasing flying vehicles. He said he has signed agreements with the United Arab Emirates and south-east Asian countries, and wants to reach the European market as soon as possible.