Huawei and JAC could help develop Maserati’s next electric car
Stellantis is reportedly in talks with Huawei and JAC over the development of a new electric car for Maserati. The same technical project would reach the Chinese market under the Maextro brand, while outside China the related model would wear a Maserati badge. No official agreement was confirmed so far.
Chinese technology, Italian badge
Several sources claim Huawei, JAC and Stellantis are discussing a joint electric car project for the Maserati brand. The proposed division of labour would resemble Huawei’s HIMA model. Huawei would define the product concept and provide the core technology, JAC would handle development and production, and Maserati would take charge of design and brand identity.
According to the report, the project would produce two versions. The car intended for China would become part of the Maextro line up, while a related model for export markets would be sold as a Maserati. Series production of the first car is already being targeted for the second half of 2027, although sources stress that no formal contract was signed yet.
Stellantis neither confirms nor denies
Stellantis told Carscoops that it holds discussions with different industrial partners around the world as part of normal business, but does not comment on speculation. In other words, the company did not confirm the partnership, but it did not deny the talks either.
For a company in Stellantis’s position, that silence says just enough to keep the story alive.
Maserati needs fresh momentum
The possible partnership comes at a difficult moment for Maserati. According to CnEVPost, the brand’s global sales fell from nearly 27,000 cars in 2023 to around 7900 in 2025. In China, once one of Maserati’s most important markets, sales dropped last year to just over 1000 cars.
Stellantis’s own figures also point to heavy pressure. The group ended 2025 with a net loss of €22.3 billion, citing, among other factors, a strategic reset intended to better match customer preferences and changing regulations.
Maserati looks to China for a faster route into the electric era
Should the project go ahead, it would mark a major shift for Maserati. The brand would keep its Italian design language and name, but the technical centre of gravity for its electric car would move to China. That could cut development time sharply and help Maserati return to the fight in the luxury electric car market.
The risk is just as obvious. Maserati buyers pay for tradition, provenance and emotion. If the new model looks too much like Chinese technology with an Italian badge on the nose, it could further weaken a prestige that already looks fragile.
For now, the safest reading is cautious. Maserati did not confirm a car developed with Huawei and JAC. Stellantis’s situation, though, makes such a partnership look less like a rumour and more like a business case waiting for a signature.
