The teased model could be the Arcfox S3, expected to launch in Q2, or the newly unveiled Alpha S5, which already features CATL batteries and an 800 V platform. On March 6, BAIC’s NEV brand, Arcfox, announced that it has joined CATL’s Choco-SEB battery swap ecosystem and simultaneously released a teaser image of an upcoming battery-swap version of a pure electric family sedan. Arcfox joins CATL’s Choco-SEB network and teases its battery-swap electric sedan According to the company, the vehicle will support ultra-fast battery replacement, with a single swap completed in just 99 seconds. BAIC and CATL have maintained a long-standing partnership. The two sides signed a strategic cooperation agreement as early as September 2022. They further deepened collaboration in June 2024, focusing on areas including intelligent chassis technology and battery swap services. In April 2025, CATL held a launch event in Shanghai for new vehicles compatible with its Choco-SEB battery swap system. At the event, the company announced plans to jointly introduce 10 battery-swap models with five automakers — FAW, Changan, BAIC, Chery and GAC. Among them is a high-quality wide-body electric family sedan developed by BAIC’s Arcfox brand. Arcfox has not yet disclosed detailed information about the model. However, industry speculation suggests the vehicle could be the Arcfox S3, which is expected to launch in the second quarter of this year. The model is positioned as a wide-body coupe-style electric family sedan developed on BAIC New Energy’s new-generation pure electric platform and designed to support battery swapping. New Arcfox Alpha S5 Another view suggests the vehicle could instead be the newly unveiled Arcfox Alpha S5, which began pre-sales in early March. The model is equipped with CATL batteries across the lineup and is built on an 800 V high-voltage platform, providing the technical foundation to support battery swapping compatibility. Notably, GAC Aion announced a day earlier that the battery-swap version of the Aion RT will be launched in April this year. It will become the second GAC Aion model to support CATL’s Choco-SEB system, following the Aion UT. Aion RT battery-swap version to launch in April On the infrastructure side, CATL’s battery swap network is expanding rapidly. Data show that as of January 23, the Choco-SEB network had covered 46 major cities and established a total of 1,107 swap stations. According to the latest roadmap, the network plans to deploy more than 3,000 battery swap stations across over 140 cities by 2026, while gradually building a highway battery swap network. In the long term, CATL aims to establish a network of around 30,000 swap stations and introduce a franchise model to accelerate expansion.
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