Gasgoo Munich- At the 2026 China Auto Forum's talent sub-forum, Ren Lihua, deputy director of the MIIT Talent Exchange Center, dissected the mounting talent crisis facing the rapidly expanding new-energy vehicle sector. Addressing the audience, Ren outlined a comprehensive system for cultivating and matching talent—a collaborative effort designed to resolve the industry's widespread struggles with recruiting, training, and retention.While the sector's overall momentum remains robust—domestic auto exports have hit 5.096 million units and new-energy vehicle shipments have doubled year-on-year—the gap between talent supply and the pace of industrial upgrading is widening.Image source: 2026 China auto ForumEstimates project a talent shortfall of 1.03 million across the new-energy vehicle industry by 2025. R&D professionals specializing in batteries, motors, and electric control—along with smart-driving experts—are particularly scarce. The supply-demand ratio for autonomous driving engineers stands at just 0.38, meaning three positions compete for every qualified candidate. Practical technicians for after-sales maintenance are also in short supply. As software takes the helm in vehicle development, interdisciplinary talent with expertise in computer science, automation, and electronics has become a prime target for automakers, prompting many to establish R&D centers in the U.S., Europe, and Japan to hunt for global expertise.Yet, university disciplines remain largely siloed. Students typically focus on theoretical study without hands-on experience in actual vehicle projects, forcing companies to invest heavily in retraining new hires. Compounding the issue, major corporations continue to hoard top-tier talent, intensifying the hiring pressure on smaller automakers. Left to their own devices, individual companies struggle to resolve these structural industry challenges.To address these pain points, the MIIT Talent Exchange Center has constructed a "five-in-one" full-chain service system. Leveraging field research to build a talent demand database, the center has partnered with multiple automakers to establish unified job competency standards. This is paired with the IITC evaluation system, which assesses personnel across theoretical and practical dimensions. The initiative uses specialized campus assessments to precisely match students with corporate roles, while simultaneously running executive training programs to bolster the industry's reserve of management talent.Looking ahead to the start of the 15th Five-Year Plan, Ren said the center will refine talent profiles for niche sectors like autonomous driving and automotive-grade chips. The goal is to integrate industry standards directly into campus curricula and scale up the campus assessment model. By mobilizing a combined force of government, industry, academia, and research, the center aims to build a sustainable talent development system—laying a solid human capital foundation for China's ascent to an automotive powerhouse.