Chery reveals winners for 2025 Chery Global Auto Design Competition

Chery recently invitied the global student design community to create a new concept vehicle, offering the top three finalists direct employment after graduation and top 15 with a cash prize.

The competition’s theme, ‘Holistic Symbiosis – Tao’, reimagined the relationship between people, vehicles, nature and society. It invited participants to think of cars as not just machines, but as intelligent lifeforms and companions in an interactive world. Rooted in Eastern philosophy, ‘Tao’ encourages human-first design with natural influences and the merging technology with humanity.

Students were given one month from the briefing to submit their design, which could be for any of Chery’s sub-brands. Each entry was presented across two A3 boards covering interior, exterior and CMF. 

The 2025 Chery Global Auto Design Competition received 1,000 entries in total. From these, the top 100 were selected on 20 July, and five days later, the top 15 were revealed. These top 15 were invited to participate in a three week internship in Chery's design studio in China and Germany – half of these finalists travelled across the world to join the Chery team. 

The judges 

The entries were evaluated by a panel of Chery’s design experts, including Pierre Fengyou Gong, director of Chery Fulwin & Chery QQ; Zhang Ziran, director of Chery iCar brand design; Shangguan Changshu, brand design director of Luxeed; and Liu Nenghua, brand design director of Exeed.

Chery’s judging panel highlighted the importance of creating opportunities for the next generation of design talent: “Future designers are not only the creators of styling, but also the 'directors' of the travel ecology. Chery builds the Chery Auto Design Competition as a bridge to communicate with the younger generations and selected talented designers. 

“We redefine school-enterprise collaboration through three dimensions: Simulating real car design projects through design competitions, open resources with Chery's VR virtual review system and parametric design toolchain as well as educational feedback.” 

Ultimately, the judges sought innovative solutions that broke through traditional automotive design, while still aligning with Chery’s design languages. Each project was evaluated on feasibility, aesthetics and sustainability.

Prizes 

The top 15 all received a trophy and certificate, scale model presentation, and an internship at the Chery Design Centre.

In addition, cash prizes were awarded as follows:

• First place: CNY 50,000 (around $7,100)

• Second place: CNY 30,000 (around $4,300) (three recipients) 

• Third place: CNY 20,000 (around $2,900) (five recipients) 

Six students also received the Excellence Award, earning CNY 10,000 each (around $1,500). The top 100 participants were all recognised with a certificate of achievement.

Winners 

First prize: 

Rooted in the iCar brand’s core values and centred on the idea of a “fun car,” the BRAVE concept by Yang Tian envisions a family-oriented vehicle adaptable to multiple lifestyles and environments. Designed around the cabin as the core experience, it features a modular structure that can switch between urban, outdoor, and family configurations. With an interior optimised for camping, family trips, and everyday use, BRAVE reflects the philosophy of “connecting with nature and loved ones anytime.” 

Second prize: 

The Star Chaser (Jetour) concept by Li Fengbai is tailored for astrologists and astronomy enthusiasts who often venture to remote, high-altitude locations. As they often transport heavy equipment and operate at night,the vehicle offers ample storage, stability and lighting solutions optimised for low-light conditions. It creates a specialised companion for stargazing and exploration under the open sky. Blending practicality with emotional connection. 

Designed for Luxeed, Lin Jingbo created the Soul Shell concept. This futuristic sports car integrates an AI-powered training system and a detachable cockpit . The overall design revolves around "soul cultivation and practical deployment." Once training is complete, the cockpit will be reinstalled into the vehicle, achieving a seamless transition from virtual growth to real-world combat.

Ontology by Hu Zhanpeng, designed for iCar, also nabbed second prize. Ontology is a design experiment exploring the relationship between AI and automotive designers. The work centres on the "identity of the younger generation of designers in the algorithmic era." The project's visual presentation blends Y2K and maximalist styles, creating a sensory overload of highly mature AIGC (AI-generated content). However, the final car itself takes the opposite approach: calm, restrained, and rationally mirror-like, symbolising a rethinking of the boundaries between design and ontology amidst cognitive disorder and semantic collapse. 

Third prize: Zhang Deyang, Wang Tianqi, Peng Ning, Xin Sheng and Meng Zihan

Excellence Awards: Khedri Zadeh Amir Pouya, Rong Yichen, Myeongjun Seok, Ariani Amir Abbas, Sungjun Park and Lucas Angelo da Silva.

Learning from the next generation 

Design competitions, especially for young designers around the world, are a radar for future consumer trends. Gen Z will be the core consumer group in the next five to ten years, so their work directly reflects the emotional appeal, aesthetic preferences and functional expectations of this generation for cars. 

Chery’s design team noticed that students embraced design tools such as AI and adopted a ‘start from the scene’ design approach. The global calls for entries serve as a platform for diverse cultural aesthetics to collide, thereby expanding the boundaries of design language. 

Next year, students can expect the scope of Chery’s design competition to evolve from a single competition into a multifaceted programme, to embrace new creativity and talent to serve as a catalyst for Chery's brand evolvement. The competition will become not just a single event, but a cornerstone of Chery's ongoing design ecosystem.