Electrification Bond Accelerates Progress

Toyota and BYD have formalised a watershed collaboration anchoring future battery‐electric vehicle innovation. The joint venture, BYD Toyota EV Technology Co., Ltd., began operations in Shenzhen in 2020, equally owned by Toyota Motor Corporation and BYD Company Ltd. Their combined expertise aims to reshape BEV design, performance, comfort and intelligence for discerning Chinese consumers-and potentially beyond.

BTET emerged from a partnership agreement signed in November 2019, with formal registration completed on 2 April 2020 and operations slated to commence in May of that year. The venture set up its headquarters in Shenzhen's Pingshan District, staffed by a balanced leadership: Hirohisa Kishi of Toyota as chairman and Zhao Binggen of BYD as chief executive. Around 300 engineers from both sides collaborate under one roof to create BEV platforms and related components.

Their first product fruition arrived with the Toyota bZ3 sedan, which launched in China in 2023. A fully electric compact car, it uses BYD's Blade LFP batteries and enjoys a claimed range of 600 km under CLTC standards, achieving an impressively low drag coefficient of 0.218. This bZ3 carried forward Toyota's“beyond Zero” philosophy-delivering value beyond emissions reduction-targeted squarely at urban Chinese drivers.

The partnership's reach expanded further with the introduction of the Toyota bZ3C crossover SUV, later renamed the bZ5, which began production and sales in May 2025. Built on e‐TNGA architecture, this compact SUV features a 73.98 kWh LFP battery, a BYD‐supplied 200 kW front‐motor, and offers up to 630 km of range. It is assembled via the FAW‐Toyota joint venture in Tianjin.

Toyota's strategy in China reflects a clear shift: leveraging local supply chains, electric‐drive systems, and rapid joint development to respond to fierce competition. One indicator of acceleration: Toyota's bZ3X SUV, priced at about US $15,000, soared to over 15,000 orders on its first day of availability. Analysts note that only with localisation-through Chinese batteries and driver‐assist tech-can such price‐competitive BEVs be viable.

BYD stands as a dominant force in the NEV sector, delivering over four million vehicles in 2024 and holding approximately 16 percent of the global EV battery market share. Its strategic objective includes extending its presence beyond China, aiming for half of its sales from overseas markets by 2030.

Toyota, traditionally a regulator of hybrid propulsion, has embraced this alliance as a critical gateway into full electrification. The collaboration with BYD has already borne tangible models in China-and signals a bold recalibration of Toyota's electrification pace. As the bZ series progresses, Toyota has confirmed it will transition to more recognisable model names, aligning BEV offerings with established buyer familiarity, potentially phasing out the bZ nomenclature globally after the bZ4X.

Through BTET, Toyota is harnessing BYD's battery and electric drive know-how, while BYD benefits from Toyota's engineering discipline and manufacturing excellence. This crossover has yielded rapidly realised EVs tailored for local tastes, agile development cycles, and competitive pricing strategies.

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