German Chancellor Friedrich Merz’s high-profile visit to China this week has ignited fresh momentum for economic and technological collaboration, with major deals like BMW’s AI integration plans stealing the spotlight. 🚗💡
Merz arrived in Beijing on February 25 with a delegation of 30+ top executives from Germany’s industrial giants, including BMW. The automaker revealed plans to embed AI from Chinese startup DeepSeek into its 2026 China-market vehicles—a move following its 2025 partnership with Alibaba on language models. 🤖🇨🇳
During talks with President Xi Jinping, both leaders emphasized ‘strategic mutual trust’ amid global turbulence. Xi highlighted that China-Germany trade hit $292 billion in 2025, cementing China as Germany’s top partner. 💼📈 "Our cooperation is a success story of mutual benefit," Xi stated, while Merz pledged to deepen EU-China economic ties for "global stability."
Experts say the visit could recalibrate global governance. "This brings predictability to a fragmented world," noted Jiang Feng of Shanghai Academy, pointing to shared priorities in green tech and AI regulation. 🌐✨
With BMW’s AI pivot and Siemens reportedly eyeing new energy partnerships, this visit isn’t just about cars and contracts—it’s a power move in reshaping 21st-century alliances. 🔋🚀
