Audi has opened a new development centre in Shanghai, but it isn’t necessarily for the four ring cars most of us know. Together with partner SAIC, the company has launched the AUDI Innovation & Technology Center (AITC). It will serve as the central development hub for AUDI, the capitalised, China-exclusive brand that runs separately from “regular” Audi.
Around 300 employees will work at the site. Audi says they will combine its global engineering expertise with China’s technology ecosystem. The stated aims are shorter development cycles, a sharper focus on Chinese buyers and stronger competitiveness in the world’s largest car market.
From First Sketch to Production
The AITC’s remit is broad, and will steer future AUDI models from initial vehicle concept right through to series production readiness. That covers overall vehicle development, plus software, artificial intelligence, driver assistance and ongoing over-the-air updates.
In practice, decisions about these cars will increasingly be made in China rather than Ingolstadt. Fred Schulze, CEO of the Audi and SAIC cooperation, points to local development and fast decision making as the key ingredients. Audi chairman Gernot Döllner describes China as one of the industry’s most dynamic innovation hubs and calls the centre a targeted investment in long term competitiveness there.
According to Audi, the work will concentrate on two main areas: advanced driver assistance systems, a fiercely contested field among Chinese manufacturers, and an AI-powered cabin, including multimodal interaction, agentic functions and personalised in-car experiences.
The centre is also developing the second generation of the Advanced Digitized Platform (ADP). Audi calls it the technological backbone of future AUDI models, so this is arguably the most significant job on the list. A platform choice shapes a brand’s cars for years. “Agentic functions” is the current industry buzzword for AI that can act on a user’s behalf, not just answer questions. Audi hasn’t yet explained what that will mean for drivers in daily use.
A Young Brand With a Short Back Catalogue
For context, AUDI only arrived in 2024. It was created specifically for China and targets tech savvy premium customers. The idea is to pair Audi’s strengths in design, driving dynamics, quality and safety with SAIC’s local know-how and deep links to China’s digital ecosystem.
So far, the lineup is short. The E5 Sportback launched as the first production model in 2025. The electric E7X SUV followed in May 2026, and a third planned model will round out the brand’s first generation. The brand sits within a wider strategy that Audi describes as two partners and two brands in China. The AITC is clearly where much of AUDI’s next chapter will be written.
Global carmakers have struggled to keep pace with Chinese rivals on software and development speed. Audi’s answer is to move the engineering closer to the customer. With the second generation ADP now being built in Shanghai, the next wave of AUDI models will owe more to China than any Audi before them.
