There’s a shift happening in Shanghai’s design studios, and it’s not just about adding more screens or tweaking headlight shapes. Chinese automotive design is growing up, finding its voice, and Geely just hosted what might be the most important conversation about what that voice should sound like. Picture this: scholars, industry heavyweights, and design gurus from China, Europe, and beyond, all gathered in one room not to copy Western templates, but to define what makes a car look and feel authentically Chinese.
Geely’s “China Design, Global Aesthetics: 2025 International Automotive Design Forum” wasn’t your typical corporate presentation. It felt more like a declaration. Here was one of China’s automotive giants, fresh off strong November sales, deciding it’s time to move beyond just building good cars to defining what good Chinese car design actually is. The timing couldn’t be more perfect. As Chinese EVs flood global markets, the question of identity becomes crucial. Are they just cheaper alternatives, or do they bring a distinct aesthetic to the table?
Three Years of Digging Deep
This forum marked a milestone. It celebrated three years of progress on Geely’s ambitious decade-long “Chinese Automotive Design Discourse System” research project, which kicked off back in 2023. Think of it as a massive cultural and engineering dig. Geely, teaming up with academic and industry partners, has been conducting round after round of theoretical and practical studies. They’ve been trying to pinpoint the core DNA of Chinese automotive design, moving from simply admiring good design to understanding why it works.
The big reveal at the event was the third edition of their White Paper on this research. This isn’t just a progress report. It signals a major shift from exploratory, almost trial-and-error design toward a structured, repeatable framework. It’s the difference between a talented artist painting by instinct and that same artist developing a coherent, teachable style. For a company managing a diverse strategic portfolio that includes everything from premium Zeekr to sporty Lynk & Co, having a unified design philosophy is essential.
The Secret Sauce: Nine Design Principles
A central output of all this brainpower is Geely’s “Nine Design Principles.” Now, before you get too excited, the complete list is still under wraps. But the concept is fascinating. These principles are meant to be a guiding light, a way to consolidate the many different design approaches across Geely’s brands under a unified methodological roof.
They serve as a reference playbook for designers who are actually applying Chinese design standards. It’s about creating consistency without stifling creativity. Imagine a designer in Gothenburg working on the next Lotus under Geely and another in Hangzhou sketching the next Geely sedan. These principles aim to ensure that, while the cars serve different markets and price points, there’s a recognizable thread of Chinese design sensibility running through them.
More Than Paint: Colour as Culture
One of the most concrete takeaways from the forum was the research on colour and cultural aesthetics. This is where theory meets the metal. Geely formally defined “Geely Blue” as part of a broader Chinese colour system. It’s not just a pretty shade. It’s a colour with cultural resonance, chosen deliberately to evoke specific feelings and connections.
Even more impressive was the release of the “Chinese User Aesthetic Map.” This tool provides a geographically and culturally informed overview of Chinese consumer design preferences. It answers questions like: Do buyers in Guangzhou prefer different interior materials than those in Beijing? Are colour trends in Chengdu influenced by local culture? This kind of granular, data-driven understanding of regional tastes is something most Western automakers are still catching up on. It shows a deep respect for the diversity within the massive Chinese market itself.
The Cabin Gets a Chinese Makeover
The forum also dove into the nitty-gritty of cabin and interior design. Here’s where the “Chinese user” focus gets really technical. Geely highlighted the development of a cockpit-scale system specifically tailored for Chinese anthropometrics. This is a big deal. Western car interiors have long been designed around Western body proportions. Geely’s research acknowledges that difference and builds a measurable, scientific framework around it.
Everything from seat bolster placement to steering wheel reach can now be optimized using data from Chinese users. Beyond ergonomics, the forum showcased the elegant integration of traditional Chinese patterns and symbols into automotive interiors. This isn’t about slapping a dragon decal on a dashboard. It’s about subtle textures, inspired motifs, and a sense of place.
Then there’s the “Galaxy Beautiful Script” – a Chinese aesthetic Latin-based typeface created for brand identity applications. It’s a small detail with huge implications. It represents the fusion of global communication (Latin script) with Chinese artistic sensibility, perfect for a brand like Geely that has global aspirations but Chinese roots.
The Big Picture Conversation
The event wrapped up with a roundtable discussion that tackled the cultural and industrial weight of all this. Participants grappled with how Chinese automotive design interacts with global market dynamics. It’s one thing to define a Chinese design language. It’s another to ensure it resonates from Berlin to Bangkok.
The conversation also focused on collaborative research and applied design approaches that could benefit the wider industry. This isn’t just a Geely project. By structuring and documenting Chinese automotive design principles, Geely is creating a reference point that could elevate the entire domestic industry. It’s a move that shows confidence and maturity.
Looking at Geely’s innovative prototypes and the success of brands like Lynk & Co on the track, it’s clear this design focus is part of a broader ambition. The 2025 forum wasn’t just a corporate event. It was a statement that Chinese automotive design is ready to step out of the shadow of imitation and into the light of authentic, confident self-expression. For car enthusiasts and industry watchers alike, that’s a development worth watching closely.
