Full transcript
0:00The European automobile was not just a
0:02means of transport ; it was Fiat taking
0:04an entire nation to the seaside for the
0:07first time , or Volkswagen getting
0:08Germany back on its feet after the war .
0:11It was an emotion that the whole world
0:13bought along with that sheet metal .
0:15These things seemed destined to last
0:17forever , but everything changes , and
0:19this time the change is about to sweep
0:21everything away . In February 2026 ,
0:24Stellantis — the group that owns Fiat ,
0:27Alfa Romeo , Peugeot , Jeep , and Maserati
0:29— filed its 2025 financial statement :
0:31a net loss of 22.3 billion euros , the
0:34worst in its history . Volkswagen , the
0:38German giant , announced the cutting of
0:4050,000 jobs by 2030 . And while the
0:43European auto industry bleeds , on the
0:45other side of the world , a Chinese
0:47giant is advancing silently . A company
0:50that 20 years ago no one in the West
0:52knew . By 2025 , it sold 2.26 million
0:55electric cars , surpassing Tesla and
0:58becoming the largest electric vehicle
1:01manufacturer on the planet . And now
1:04that giant has come knocking in Italy ,
1:06and it is not a courtesy call . So the
1:08question today is only one : what is
1:10really happening to the European car ,
1:12and who is buying it ? Because the
1:14answer has two sides . Yes , BYD is
1:17bringing the West to its knees , but
1:20just as it reaches out for our
1:22factories , something inside the empire
1:24has begun to tremble , and the most
1:26recent numbers tell a story no one
1:29expected . Before I tell you , if you
1:32like these stories , leave a like and
1:33subscribe to the channel . It is the
1:36best way you have to support me . I’ll
1:37also leave my Instagram profile in the
1:39description below . And remember that
1:41every Saturday at 2:00 PM , we release a
1:43new video . I am Riccardo Elias . We
1:45start from a battery laboratory in a
1:46China that no one was watching . We will
1:49then arrive at the gates of Mirafiori
1:51and end up facing a question that
1:53concerns us all . Are we witnessing the
1:56birth of an empire or its first stumble
1:58? Now grab a drink , get comfortable ,
2:01and let's start the video . We are in
2:071995 in Shenzhen , in southern China .
2:11Shenzhen at that time is a permanent
2:13construction site , a special economic
2:16zone where Deng Xiaoping decided that
2:18China would open its doors to
2:20capitalism . Skyscrapers popping up like
2:23mushrooms , factories opening every week
2:25, and millions of people arriving from
2:27the countryside with a suitcase and a
2:29hunger for redemption that words cannot
2:30describe . In the middle of all this is
2:34a 20 - year-old man named Wang Chuanfu .
2:36He does not come from a wealthy family ;
2:38he was orphaned as a boy , raised by his
2:40older brothers , and he studied
2:42chemistry — battery chemistry , to be
2:44precise . A field that in the mid - 90s
2:46seemed like the most boring and useless
2:48thing in the world . But Wang sees
2:51something that others don't . He sees
2:54the world filling up with devices that
2:57need power to run — telephones , cell
2:59phones , camcorders — and he sees that
3:02all the batteries for those devices
3:05come from Japan at huge prices . And
3:08that’s when Wang asks himself : " What
3:10if I tried to make them ? Right here at
3:12a tenth of the cost ? " So he asks a
3:14relative for a loan , gathers about
3:16twenty workers , and starts a company in
3:19a warehouse . He calls it BYD . Those are
3:22the initials of a slogan that would
3:24become almost prophetic . " Build Your
3:27Dreams . " But as he well knows , you
3:30can't build a company on dreams , and
3:32competing with the Japanese seems
3:34impossible . They produce batteries
3:37using multi-million dollar automated
3:39lines , perfect machines that Wang could
3:42never afford . So he doesn't compete , he
3:46sidesteps the problem ; he takes those
3:48same operations and breaks them into
3:51hundreds of manual micro-steps handled
3:54by low-wage workers . Where Sony uses a
3:57robot , Wang uses 20 pairs of hands .
4:00It’s artisanal , it’s very slow by
4:02Western standards , but it costs a
4:04fraction and it works . Within a few
4:07years , BYD becomes one of the largest
4:09rechargeable battery producers in the
4:11world . A supplier for giants like
4:13Motorola and Nokia , and in 2002 , he
4:15takes it to the Hong Kong Stock
4:16Exchange . He could have stopped there .
4:19But in 2003 , Wang makes another bet . He
4:22buys a small bankrupt Chinese car
4:24manufacturer , Qinchuan Auto , and enters
4:27the car business . Analysts laugh — a
4:31battery maker that now wants to build
4:33cars . BYD’s stock price at that
4:36moment crashes , and continues to crash
4:38in the days following the announcement .
4:42Investors think he has completely lost
4:44his mind , but Wang has it in his head
4:46that the car of the future won't be an
4:48engine with a battery around it , but
4:49rather a battery with a car around it ,
4:51and he already knows how to make
4:53batteries better than anyone in the
4:55world . In December 2008 , while the
4:59world was burning in the financial
5:01crisis , BYD presents an automobile
5:03called the F3DM , and that car , to those
5:05who know how to read it , is a small
5:07bombshell . It is the first
5:10mass-produced plug-in hybrid in history
5:12. The first one you could recharge at
5:15home from a power outlet and then rely
5:17on the gas engine when the battery ran
5:19out . BYD had gotten there before Toyota
5:23, before General Motors , before all the
5:25giants spending billions on research .
5:28The battery kid from Shenzhen had
5:30beaten the entire global industry to
5:32the punch , and it was right at that
5:34moment that an American took notice of
5:36them . In September 2008 , Warren Buffett
5:39, one of the greatest investors , bought
5:42about 10 % of BYD for 230 million dollars
5:45. He was seen as a cross between Thomas
5:48Edison and a great manager . And here
5:51came the first blow , because the
5:52technology was probably the right one .
5:56It was the timing that was wrong ,
5:58because in its first year , BYD sold
6:00only 48 F3DMs . The problem was clear :
6:04there were no charging stations , no
6:06culture , and no trust . BYD had built
6:09the car of the future , but ten years
6:12too early . Very difficult years
6:14followed . In 2009 , BYD tried again with
6:17the E6 , their first pure electric , but
6:20they marketed it mostly as a taxi
6:22because private buyers wouldn't
6:24purchase it . For most of the next
6:27decade , the company struggled ; sales
6:29were disappointing , profits were thin ,
6:32the stock languished , and Buffett’s
6:34investment didn't take off for a long
6:36time . Around 2010 , it seemed BYD was
6:40just another Chinese promise destined
6:42to fade away , but Wang was stubborn and
6:44didn't give up . He continued to invest
6:48in batteries , hybrids , and electric
6:50motors , while everyone else just
6:52thought he was crazy . And in 2013 , the
6:56Qin arrived , a much more mature plug-in
6:58hybrid , and something slowly started to
7:00change . Yes , because BYD wasn't just
7:04building cutting-edge cars ; year after
7:06year , away from the spotlight , they
7:08were building a sophisticated
7:10industrial infrastructure — a mechanism
7:12that in a few years , no one would be
7:14able to stop . Now , before moving on ,
7:21let's better understand how things work
7:23inside the company , because we’ll
7:25need this for later . How does BYD
7:27manage to cost so little ? There are
7:30several points here , but the last one
7:32is the most important , because you can
7:34find an electric BYD in China at prices
7:36that are science fiction for a European
7:37manufacturer . The entry-level model ,
7:41the small Seagull , starts at home at a
7:43price equivalent to less than €
7:4510,000 . In Brazil , its sibling , the
7:47Dolphin Mini , has become the
7:49best-selling electric car in the
7:50country . These are prices that
7:53Volkswagen , Stellantis , or Renault
7:56simply cannot match . And why ? Because
7:59they are built in a completely
8:01different way . Many , in fact , think , "
8:03Well , it’s cheap because labor costs
8:05much less in China . " That’s true , but
8:09only to a small extent ; the truth is
8:11that BYD has built a value chain that
8:14has no equal . The first point is the
8:16batteries . The battery is the economic
8:19heart of an electric car . On its own ,
8:21it accounts for about 40 % of the total
8:23cost of the vehicle . Now , almost all
8:25manufacturers in the world buy their
8:27batteries . Even Tesla purchases a good
8:29portion of its cells from external
8:31suppliers . BYD , on the other hand , has
8:35been making its own batteries for 31
8:36years ; it was founded on the Blade
8:38Battery , made with iron and phosphate
8:40instead of more expensive and rare
8:42materials , reaching a
8:43cost-to-performance ratio that others
8:45are chasing . Not only that , BYD has
8:49moved upstream to the mines , acquiring
8:52stakes in lithium deposits in Africa ,
8:54Zimbabwe among others , controlling the
8:56raw material , processing it into cells ,
8:58and putting them into the car . No
9:02intermediaries in the entire chain .
9:04There is another point , the second
9:06point , which is chips , semiconductors .
9:09Inside an electric car is a component
9:11called an IGBT , a power switch that
9:13governs the flow of electricity from
9:15the battery to the motor . They call it
9:18the CPU of the electric car , and after
9:20the battery , it is the most expensive
9:21part . On its own . It accounts for 7 to
9:2410 % of the car's price . Well ,
9:27practically all manufacturers in the
9:29world buy these chips from a few large
9:31companies , like the German ones . BYD ,
9:34on the other hand , manufactures them
9:36itself . It has a division , BYD
9:38Semiconductor , which is currently the
9:40largest Chinese producer of power chips
9:43for cars . And here is proof of how
9:46powerful this choice is : remember the
9:49great global microchip crisis between
9:512021 and 2022 , the one where you
9:54couldn't find cars , delivery times
9:56lengthened , and used car prices
9:58skyrocketed . In those months , giants
10:02like Ford and General Motors were
10:04forced to stop production lines ,
10:06shutting down factories and sending
10:08workers home because a chip costing a
10:10few euros was missing . During those
10:14same months , BYD not only continued to
10:17produce , but increased production
10:19because it mostly made the chips
10:21in-house and could otherwise turn to
10:23Chinese suppliers who were left out of
10:26the global bottleneck . While the West
10:29was on its knees due to the lack of a
10:31component , BYD had found a way not to
10:33depend on the same supply chain . The
10:36third point is motors and power
10:38electronics . For most car manufacturers
10:41, the electric motor and transmission
10:43are bought from specialized suppliers .
10:46BYD , instead , produces them internally
10:48through its FinDreams division .
10:50Permanent magnet motors , complete
10:53traction systems . It has developed what
10:55it calls an 8 - in - 1 powertrain . Eight
10:58different systems — motor , transmission
11:00, control , charger , and others —
11:02included in a single compact block ;
11:04therefore , fewer parts , less assembly ,
11:06and lower cost . Everything is designed
11:09to fit together perfectly . The fourth
11:11point , however , is the most recent one ,
11:13and it tells you where all of this is
11:14heading . In 2026 , BYD even began
11:17producing chips for assisted driving
11:19in-house , the most complex processors
11:21of all , which until now they had
11:22purchased from suppliers like America's
11:25Nvidia . It announced investments
11:28equivalent to nearly 11 billion dollars
11:30in software research and smart car
11:32technology . Essentially , the final
11:35piece of the puzzle they were still
11:37buying externally was being brought
11:38in-house , and that’s where the
11:39picture becomes complete . BYD produces
11:43about 65 % of its car components
11:45internally . It has over 100 internal
11:49factories and even its own cargo ships
11:51to transport cars around the world , so
11:53it doesn't even depend on maritime
11:55routes . And now , if you compare this to
11:57how a European car is made — a
11:59Volkswagen or a Stellantis — it is at
12:02the center of a web of hundreds of
12:04suppliers . They buy batteries from one ,
12:07chips from another , engines from a
12:09third , and each of those suppliers
12:11rightly adds their own profit margin on
12:13top . Every single part you buy from an
12:17outsider is a part on which someone
12:19else makes a profit before you do . When
12:22you bring together hundreds of
12:23suppliers , you add up hundreds of
12:25margins , and all those margins end up
12:27in the price the customer pays . BYD did
12:30something that is simple to say but
12:32almost impossible to imitate . It cut
12:35out all the middlemen , all the margins
12:37that a European manufacturer gives away
12:39to its suppliers . In that case , BYD
12:42keeps them in its pocket and uses them
12:44to lower the price , which is why it can
12:46sell an electric car for € 10,000
12:48without losing money . It is the result
12:51of 20 years of patient construction .
12:53And then there is one final strategy ,
12:55the one that made their volume explode .
12:57While Europe bet everything on pure
12:59electrics , BYD kept a foot in both
13:01worlds , continuing to sell mass amounts
13:03of plug-in hybrids — those with a plug
13:05and a gas engine , perfect for those
13:07afraid of running out of charge . It was
13:11that dual track that multiplied sales
13:13to 2.26 million pure electrics in 2025 .
13:17The historic overtake of Tesla is a
13:19revenue that has surpassed 100 billion
13:21dollars . This is the visible genius of
13:24BYD , and it is all true , it is all
13:26documented , but this is still not the
13:28complete story . Yes , because there is a
13:32seventh and final ingredient in this
13:34entire recipe that is very important to
13:36mention . An ingredient that does not
13:38appear in any of BYD’s balance sheets
13:41, yet has been as decisive as all the
13:43others put together . A player sitting
13:45at the table from day one that has
13:48always remained in the shadows and that
13:50made every single figure I just told
13:53you possible . And now you might be
14:00asking yourself , okay , sure , that's
14:01cool , but how is it possible that
14:03dozens of Chinese automakers , not just
14:05BYD , but Xiaomi , Chery , Nio , and others
14:07, have all grown at the same time ? All
14:11at the same moment , all capable of
14:13selling at prices that nobody in the
14:16West can afford . Is it just the genius
14:19of Wang multiplied by 20 different
14:21companies , or is there something more ?
14:23Well , there is something more , and
14:25it’s no secret . It’s a declared
14:27public policy . In 2015 , the Chinese
14:29government launched a plan called Made
14:32in China 2025 . The goal is written in
14:35black and white . Transforming China
14:37from the world's factory , the one that
14:40assembles shoes and toys , into a global
14:42leader in future technologies . And
14:46among the strategic sectors listed at
14:47the top is the new energy vehicle . The
14:50State therefore decides that this will
14:53be one of the matches to win and exerts
14:55all the influence that a state can
14:58command . What does that mean in
14:59practice ? It means direct purchase
15:02subsidies for years that made a Chinese
15:04electric car more affordable than a gas
15:06car . It means tax exemptions , land for
15:12factories at symbolic prices , loans
15:14from State banks , and upstream control
15:17of most of the global battery supply
15:20chain . To give you a sense of how much
15:24this support still weighs today .
15:27According to data reported by industry
15:30press , in 2022 alone , BYD received
15:32government subsidies of 12.47 billion
15:35yuan . A figure equal to about 38 % of its
15:39entire net profit for that year .
15:42That’s not a minor detail ; it’s
15:44more than a third of their profits . And
15:46here we reach the question that nobody
15:48in Europe wanted to ask in time . When
15:51Volkswagen , Stellantis , or Renault step
15:53onto the field against BYD , who are
15:55they really playing against ? Because a
15:58European manufacturer plays on its own ,
16:01with its own shareholders , private
16:03banks , and budget constraints , but on
16:05the other side of the table , there
16:07isn't just a brilliant company . There
16:10is a brilliant company , yes , but one
16:12sitting inside an industrial ecosystem
16:15built by the State to make it win , with
16:17low-cost energy , guaranteed raw
16:19materials , and patient credit that
16:21doesn't demand immediate profit . And a
16:24massive , protected domestic market to
16:26practice in before heading out into the
16:28world . It is not an even playing field ,
16:32and that is why the West , once it
16:34finally realized , reacted in the only
16:36way it knew how : by raising walls . The
16:39United States raised tariffs on Chinese
16:41electric cars to 100 % , effectively
16:44closing the market . The European Union ,
16:47for its part , began imposing additional
16:49tariffs in 2024 on electric vehicles
16:51made in China , accusing those very
16:53state subsidies of creating unfair
16:54competition . And this is where the
16:58smartest move in the whole story is
17:00hidden , because if they slap a tariff
17:01on cars you import from China , the
17:03countermove is both obvious and
17:05brilliant at the same time . You not
17:08only stop importing because you then
17:10build the cars within their borders ,
17:12and to build them within their borders
17:14you don't need to start from scratch .
17:16You just need factories that are
17:18already ready , perhaps factories that
17:20Westerners can no longer manage to keep
17:22running . But for a plan like this to
17:24work , a precise condition is needed .
17:28You need there to be , somewhere in
17:30Europe , factories that are stopped ,
17:32empty , left halfway , and that condition
17:34had already existed in Europe for some
17:37time , only it was much worse than
17:39anyone looking from the outside could
17:41have imagined . No one robbed Europe ;
17:49Europe handed over the keys directly .
17:52And to understand how , we must go back
17:55a few years , to 2023 . The year in which
17:58Europe decided the future of the
17:59automobile , and without knowing it , its
18:01own as well . In March of that year , the
18:05European Union had made a historic
18:07decision : to ban the sale of new
18:09gasoline and diesel cars starting from
18:112035 . Betting everything , and I mean
18:16everything , on electric — an ambitious
18:18choice , made with the best
18:20environmental intentions , but with a
18:22huge problem hidden inside . Europe had
18:26decided to race toward electric ,
18:28without possessing , however , the
18:30technology that makes electric
18:32affordable , namely batteries and , as we
18:34have seen , also chips , motors , the
18:36entire chain — all things that the
18:39Chinese made in-house and we didn't .
18:43European automakers invested tens of
18:45billions in electric car factories that
18:47customers at those prices weren't
18:49buying enough of , and while they burned
18:51cash on electric that wasn't taking off
18:53, they also lost ground in the market
18:55they knew best . China , where for
18:58decades they had made their fortune and
19:00by which they were now being crushed by
19:02local brands . The numbers of the fall
19:06are impressive , and it is worth listing
19:08them calmly because each of these
19:10numbers is a factory , a territory , and
19:12thousands of families . Porsche , the
19:17jewel , the brand that for years had the
19:19highest margins in the entire global
19:22industry , the one that earned more on
19:25each car than anyone else , from 5.64
19:27billion to 413 million euros . The
19:31margin on sales , which was at 14
19:32percent , plummeted to one . Practically ,
19:35in one year Porsche stops being a
19:37money-making machine and becomes a
19:39company that barely stays on its feet
19:41and announces thousands of cuts .
19:44Volkswagen , the largest automotive
19:47group in Europe . In 2025 net profit
19:50fell by 44 % , operating profit was
19:52halved , and for the first time since
19:54its founding , the company went as far
19:56as to threaten the closure of some
19:58factories at home . In the end , the
20:02factories remain open , but only in
20:05exchange for 35,000 fewer jobs by 2030
20:08and a historic employment agreement
20:10dating back to the 90s being torn up
20:13and rewritten from scratch . At the
20:17group level , including Audi and Porsche
20:20, the cuts planned by 2030 rise to
20:2350,000 , about 7.4 % of the total
20:25workforce . The company head says it in
20:29words that sound like a surrender
20:31mission , stating that Chinese
20:32manufacturers have identified Europe as
20:34a market to attack and they must
20:35continue working on costs . And then
20:38there is Stellantis , the group where
20:40the heart of the Italian auto industry
20:41beats . On February 6 , 2026 , the company
20:44gives the market a preview of the
20:46impending blow , and the stock collapses
20:48in a single session , down nearly 24 % .
20:51Three weeks later , on February 26 , the
20:53official financial statement is filed
20:56in Amsterdam , where the group's legal
20:58headquarters are located . The net loss
21:00is 22.3 billion euros . The worst in
21:04Stellantis ' history , dragged down by
21:0625.4 billion in extraordinary charges
21:08related to the change in strategy . Here
21:11is the bitter paradox , and it is a
21:13paradox that should make us reflect for
21:15a long time . Europe had chosen electric
21:18power to free itself from one
21:20dependency , that of oil . Instead , by
21:23rushing so quickly toward a technology
21:26it hadn't yet mastered , it handed
21:28itself over , tied hand and foot , to a
21:30new dependency — perhaps even worse
21:33than the first : the Chinese supply
21:35chain . And someone in Shenzhen noticed
21:37the door was wide open . They realized
21:40they could enter not as an enemy , but
21:43as a savior . And while Europe was
21:45counting the damages , BYD had already
21:47refined its strategy , having already
21:50tested it on other continents . By now ,
21:53it was Europe's turn . But what we will
21:56discover is that this time , it won't
21:58arrive alone . Someone from the inside
22:01will pave the way for it . And now BYD
22:07holds all the cards and decides to
22:09floor the accelerator . And when BYD
22:12accelerates , no one can stop it ; just
22:14look at what happens . First stop ,
22:17Thailand . On July 4 , 2024 , in Rayong ,
22:20BYD inaugurates its first car factory
22:23built outside of Chinese borders . A
22:27plant put up in just 16 months with a
22:30capacity of 150,000 cars a year and
22:3210,000 jobs . Today in Thailand , one in
22:36three electric vehicles is sold by BYD ,
22:38but the detail you must remember is the
22:40date . That factory opened its gates the
22:43exact same day the European Union began
22:45imposing its tariffs on Chinese
22:47electric vehicles . On one hand , Europe
22:50was raising the wall ; on the other , BYD
22:52was proving it knew how to bypass it by
22:54planting roots directly in the markets
22:56it wanted to conquer . Second stop , and
22:59this is the one that should make our
23:01antennas prick up : Brazil . In the state
23:06of Bahia , there was a large Ford
23:08factory , and the American giant Ford
23:10left Brazil in 2021 , closing its doors
23:13and leaving thousands of workers
23:15jobless , an empty industrial cathedral .
23:19In 2023 , BYD announced the acquisition
23:22of that very plant . They are investing
23:25about a billion dollars there . They
23:27began work the following year , and in
23:29October 2025 , they inaugurated it in
23:31Camaçari with President Lula himself
23:34cutting the ribbon . It is the largest
23:38BYD factory outside of Asia , and today ,
23:40according to the South China Morning
23:43Post , BYD controls about 74 % of electric
23:45vehicles in Brazil . And it is at this
23:49point that we come to Italy , because
23:51that model is about to repeat itself .
23:53Except that this time it is not
23:55happening on the other side of the
23:57ocean ; it is happening right at home .
23:59Let's go to Cassino , in the province of
24:01Frosinone . The Cassino plant has been a
24:04jewel of Italian industry for decades .
24:07High automation , thousands of workers ,
24:09with Alfa Romeos and Maseratis rolling
24:11off the lines . According to the
24:14FIM-CISL report released on April 9 , it
24:17produced 2,916 , a drop of 37.4 % compared
24:22to the year before . But there is
24:24another number that chills the blood .
24:26In those three months , the factory
24:27worked for a total of 16 days . The
24:30union uses a phrase that says it all .
24:32The situation has now passed any limit
24:35of sustainability . About 2,000
24:38employees remain , many on solidarity
24:41contracts , in a plant that opens its
24:44gates only 5 or 6 days a month . Cassino
24:48is our ghost factory , and the voids in
24:50this Chinese story do not stay empty
24:53for long . In May 2026 , a conference
24:56organized by the Financial Times , The
24:58Future of the Car , is held in London .
25:01Stella Li , executive vice president of
25:03BYD , the woman who led the group's
25:06international expansion , takes the
25:08stage and tells the press something
25:11that sends shockwaves through Italy .
25:14According to Bloomberg , BYD is
25:16negotiating with Stellantis and other
25:18European manufacturers to take over
25:20underutilized production plants on the
25:23continent . We are talking not only to
25:25Stellantis , but also to other companies
25:28, Li says . And among the sites under
25:30consideration , Bloomberg reports , are
25:33Cassino and Mirafiori . Mirafiori in
25:36Turin , the place where mass-market
25:38Italian cars were born , the cathedral
25:40of Fiat , the place where the industrial
25:42destiny of an entire country was
25:43decided for generations . And now , one
25:46of the hypotheses on the table is that
25:48a Chinese group might take over its
25:50lines . But there is more . Also
25:52according to the rumors gathered by
25:54Bloomberg , BYD's interest does not stop
25:56at the factories . Stella Li described
25:59Maserati as a very interesting brand .
26:02She clarified that there are no
26:04concrete negotiations for the purchase .
26:07No official offer has been announced ,
26:09but the mere fact that the name of the
26:11trident , one of the absolute symbols of
26:13Italian luxury , is being spoken in that
26:15sentence shows just how deep the wave
26:17has reached . And then there is the
26:21detail that closes this circle , which
26:23almost hurts to recount . Leading BYD's
26:27European strategy as Special Advisor
26:29for Europe since September 2024 is an
26:31Italian named Alfredo Altavilla , who
26:34was Sergio Marchionne's right-hand man
26:36for years during the Fiat Chrysler era ,
26:39a key figure in the merger that created
26:41the group that later became Stellantis .
26:45So , the man who helped build the
26:47Italian automotive giant is now working
26:50for the Chinese giant that is eyeing
26:52Italian factories . It is certainly not
26:56betrayal ; it is the market , it is the
26:58history of an industry changing masters
27:00, but it is also the perfect image of a
27:03shift in power , knowledge , and talent
27:05from one continent to another . At this
27:08point , it seemed like the end of the
27:11story : the Eastern giant buying up the
27:13remnants of the old power piece by
27:15piece and continent by continent . A
27:18pre-written finale . But this is
27:21precisely where we need to stop ,
27:23because while BYD was extending its
27:24reach across Europe , back home , in the
27:27heart of the Empire , something had
27:28begun to tremble . Let’s go back to
27:36China , late April 2026 . BYD releases
27:39its first-quarter results , and for the
27:41first time , the perfect machine shows a
27:44crack that cannot be hidden . Net profit
27:48plummets by 55 % , the lowest level in
27:50over 3 years , and the detail that
27:52weighs heaviest is the fourth
27:54consecutive quarter of declining
27:56profits . Not an accident , but a trend .
28:00Revenue falls by 11 % , but the figure
28:02that best illustrates the changing of
28:04the seasons concerns sales . 700,000 new
28:07energy vehicles in the quarter , down 30
28:10% from the previous year and nearly 48 %
28:13from the record volumes of the previous
28:15quarter . In just a few months , almost
28:18half of the sales volume has vanished ,
28:20and there is one number that made
28:22analysts prick up their ears more than
28:24any other . Operating cash flow — that
28:27is , the actual money coming in from
28:29operations — has collapsed by 67 % . For
28:35a company that must finance global
28:37expansion , factories in Thailand ,
28:39Brazil , Hungary , and perhaps tomorrow
28:42in Italy , cash is oxygen , and the
28:44oxygen has suddenly been cut by
28:46two-thirds . And what happened ? Well ,
28:50three things happened all at once . The
28:53first concerns that invisible player we
28:55were talking about earlier . Remember
28:58the state subsidies ? The Chinese state ,
29:00after years of generosity , has begun to
29:02turn off the tap . Tax exemptions on the
29:06purchase of new energy vehicles were
29:08reduced starting in 2026 , and this has
29:11had a perverse effect . Many customers
29:15moved their purchases to late 2025 so
29:17they wouldn't miss out on the discount .
29:20Result : the start of 2026 saw garages
29:22full and customers nowhere to be found .
29:25When growth has long been supported by
29:28government stimulus , the moment that
29:30support is withdrawn is always the
29:32moment of truth . Second , a fierce price
29:36war broke out at home . And here , there
29:39is an almost poetic irony . BYD built
29:42its dominance precisely on price , on
29:44that extraordinary , low-cost machine we
29:47dismantled earlier . But now , dozens of
29:50Chinese competitors like Xiaomi — which
29:52moved from electronics to cars with
29:54billions to spend — and a crowd of
29:55brands popping up every year , have
29:57started playing the same game by
29:59cutting prices themselves . It is a
30:02bottomless race to the bottom that they
30:04call Neuan in China . A competition so
30:07destructive that , in the end , it
30:09benefits no one . It is so fierce that
30:12the government had to intervene again ,
30:13this time to put the brakes on it . And
30:16in a price war , even those with the
30:18lowest costs in the world end up
30:20eroding their margins until they bleed .
30:23And the third issue is the most
30:24delicate . And here , precise words must
30:27be used because some analysts have long
30:29raised doubts about BYD's actual debt
30:32levels . The most cited case is a report
30:35by the research firm GMT Research ,
30:37published by Bloomberg and covered in
30:39Italy by Il Sole 24 Ore . This is an
30:42estimate — I emphasize , an estimate
30:45contested by the company , not a balance
30:48sheet figure — according to which BYD's
30:51actual net debt in mid - 2024 would be
30:54about $ 44 billion , well above the $ 27
30:57billion reported . The difference would
31:00be in how the company manages payments
31:02to suppliers . And here lies the dark
31:04side of low prices . Various
31:07journalistic reports indicate that BYD
31:09pays its suppliers with very long terms
31:12, around 275 days on average in 2023 ,
31:14according to data cited by Il Sole 24
31:17Ore , versus the typical 45-60 days in
31:19other markets . In practice , according
31:23to this interpretation , part of the
31:25price miracle is also supported by
31:26suppliers who are paid months and
31:28months later . BYD , it must be said ,
31:31rejects these reconstructions . These
31:33are estimates and interpretations by
31:35analysts and journalists , and it is
31:37right to treat them as such . And then
31:39there is the heaviest shadow , the one
31:41concerning people . In 2026 , BYD became ,
31:45as reported by CNBC , the first Chinese
31:47company to be brought before the
31:49European Parliament over allegations of
31:51labor abuses within the Union . The
31:54origin is an investigation by the
31:56organization China Labor Watch
31:57published in April , which claims to
32:00have interviewed 50 Chinese migrant
32:02workers employed at the BYD factory
32:04site in Hungary . The accusations — and
32:06they are accusations , because that’s
32:09what they are — speak of 7 - day work
32:11weeks exceeding 12 hours a day . Unpaid
32:14overtime and withheld salary portions .
32:17Three MEPs have formally questioned the
32:20European Commission , and the Hungarian
32:23investigation follows a similar case
32:25that emerged in Brazil , at the
32:27Camaçari plant , where labor
32:30authorities described the conditions of
32:32some workers as akin to slavery . BYD ,
32:36when contacted by international outlets
32:38, failed to respond to requests for
32:39comment in several instances .
32:41Previously , it had stated that it had
32:43severed ties with the contractor
32:45involved in the Brazilian case . These
32:48are ongoing investigations , not
32:50convictions , but they are a problem
32:51that strikes the empire at its most
32:53exposed point , right at the moment of
32:55its European expansion . And finally ,
32:58the quietest clue of all . Remember
33:00Warren Buffett , who in 2008 bet on BYD
33:03when no one else believed in it yet ?
33:06Well , during 2025 , we discovered that
33:09his Berkshire Hathaway sold it all . He
33:13liquidated the entire stake after 17
33:15years with significant gains . One of
33:18the most profitable investments in its
33:20history . Closed out in silence . Now , an
33:23investor might sell for a thousand
33:25reasons , and Buffett simply cashed in
33:27an enormous profit . But when such a
33:30major investment exits on tiptoe just
33:32as everyone else celebrates the triumph
33:34, perhaps it’s worth asking what they
33:37saw that others don't . Put all these
33:41pieces together : subsidies being
33:42withdrawn , price wars at home , cash
33:45flow drying up by two-thirds , doubts
33:47about the books , and labor
33:48investigations . It’s the first
33:50investor who closes the door and walks
33:52away . And you realize that the giant
33:54which was buying up Europe isn't as
33:56invulnerable as it seemed . It , too , is
33:59now walking on ground that has begun to
34:02shift . At the end of this story , two
34:05images remain , side by side . The first
34:09is that of a continent that invented
34:11the automobile and today watches a
34:13colossus sold from afar knocking on the
34:15doors of its most iconic factories . Not
34:18due to a moment of distraction , but
34:20because the model that made us great
34:22has ceased to be the winning model . And
34:25because while we were buying every part
34:28from 100 different suppliers , one
34:30company built everything in-house and
34:32played within an ecosystem designed
34:34specifically to let it win . The second
34:37image is that of the winner who , at the
34:39exact moment of its triumph , discovers
34:41it is more fragile than it believed . An
34:44empire built on rock-bottom prices that
34:46discovers that rock-bottom prices
34:47eventually present the bill to the
34:49suppliers , the workers , and the cash
34:51register . And perhaps the true lesson
34:54of this story isn't about automobiles ,
34:56it’s about us . Because while we work ,
34:59while we think we are improving , and
35:02while we strive to do better with the
35:04tools we have , somewhere there is
35:06always someone building a different way
35:09to do the same thing , faster , with less
35:11waste . At a cost we cannot even compete
35:16with . And one day , without warning ,
35:19that someone might knock on our door
35:21and take our place . It applies to a 100
35:25- billion-dollar giant and it applies ,
35:27on a different scale , to each one of us
35:29. No one today knows which of the two
35:32stories we are actually watching , not
35:34even those writing them . So , the next
35:37time you see a car go by on the street ,
35:39yours , your neighbor's , or one parked
35:41outside , try asking yourself one thing .
35:44Who really built it ? And more
35:46importantly , who will build it in 10
35:49years ? If this story has made you want
35:51to understand how a company can take
35:54100 years of history and erase it in
35:56one afternoon , I’ve told one that
35:58will leave you speechless . It is the
36:00story of Jaguar . 106 years of history ,
36:03five Le Mans wins , the car that Enzo
36:06Ferrari called the most beautiful ever
36:08built , and then in 2024 , a 32 - second
36:10commercial without a single car and a
36:1297 % drop in sales . To watch that video
36:17you can click here , I’ll tell you
36:19that story over there , and I’ll see
36:20you in the other video .