Xpeng: G7 has outperformed expectations; the vision-only approach toautonomous driving will require massive investments in the long run. Baidu: Advertising revenue is challenged by Xiaohongshu and Douyin; AI search is helping to stabilise traffic in the short term but lacks asustainable business model; Long-term investment in AI verticals remain optimistic. Hays:Strong demand in Central and Eastern Europe; contracting isexpanding beyond IT into finance and marketing; increasing focus onhigher-margin white-collar job placements.

After interviewing a number of executives in the EV space, Rosalie Chen, Analyst at Third Bridge made a series of remarks regarding Xpeng, informed by insights from industry experts:

The G7 has outperformed expectations, with deliveries already surpassing 10,000 units. Priced from RMB 195,800, it stands as one of the most affordable SUV BEVs in its class, giving XPeng a strong value proposition. Its established reputation in intelligent driving continues to resonate with buyers, even if development has slowed compared with tier-one competitors. While Xiaomi’s Yu7 also plays in the SUV EV space, its larger size, higher price point and stronger brand positioning aim at a different customer base, limiting direct overlap between the two models.

Our experts say XPeng’s in-house Turing chip, once mass-produced, could be a pivotal step in the company’s intelligent driving ambitions. The chip is designed specifically for XPeng’s own requirements, offering targeted optimisation over generic industry solutions.

XPeng stands apart in China’s EV landscape by committing to a “vision-only” strategy for autonomous driving, similar to Tesla’s approach, rather than the lidar-heavy path favoured by Huawei and many domestic rivals. This visual route is widely seen as technically correct but extremely demanding, requiring massive investment in algorithms, computing power and data. Our experts note tha vision-only may yield a leaner, potentially more scalable system in the long run, but rivals using lidar are showing faster short-term gains in driver-assist performance.

In the TMT space, Eric Shen, Analyst at Third Bridge says of Baidu:

Our experts say Baidu’s advertising business is under increasing pressure. The company’s search arm, once a dominant cash generator, now faces stiff competition from Xiaohongshu and Douyin. These rivals have built content ecosystems that feel livelier and stickier, drawing users away from Baidu’s more static, web-based offerings.

At the same time, Baidu has been quick to embrace AI search. Products such as Ernie Bot and integrations with DeepSeek are helping the company stabilise traffic in the short term. But our experts caution that while AI search can slow the decline, it has not yet unlocked a sustainable business model. In its current form, AI search does little to boost advertising revenue because advertisers are reluctant to pay for placements in an unproven format.

Looking further ahead, however, our experts remain optimistic. They point to Baidu’s deep technical DNA and a long-standing culture of investment in AI. While short-term monetisation remains elusive, the company is laying the groundwork for AI to transform industries such as healthcare, legal services and automotive. In these verticals, AI-powered applications could eventually provide Baidu with new growth engines.

Mona 03 Max is expected to account for about 40-50% of the total sales volume of Mona 03, and the Max version priced at RMB 129,800 can account for 25% of the total order volume of Mona 03. The Mona 03 Max version of XPeng adopts a different strategy from the past, so the proportion of this Max version cannot be directly compared with that of the highest-end configuration in the past.

Olly Anibaba, Analyst at Third Bridge comments on Hays: Our experts say Central and Eastern Europe have historically low unemployment rates of 2–5%, driving strong demand for recruitment services. Hays dominates permanent recruitment in Poland, with Michael Page and Devire as the main competitors. Technology contracting is a key focus, competing against both recruitment agencies and IT service providers.

Market trends indicate contracting popularity is expanding beyond IT, with finance and marketing professionals expected to increasingly adopt this model.

Our experts say Hays is shifting towards a German-influenced strategy, prioritising run-rate business such as contracting and temporary staffing over permanent recruitment to improve predictability and margins.

Hays positions itself as a specialist recruitment company focused on white-collar job placements, which generate around 20–25% margins compared with 5% for blue-collar staffing.