ZERON, a new energy heavy-duty truck and intelligent driving technology company jokingly dubbed the “Tesla of the trucking industry” by insiders, has announced the completion of a $200 million Series B2 funding round. This marks another major raise for ZERON just two months after its previous funding round in March this year. Combined with its earlier RMB 1.2 billion financing, ZERON has secured a total of approximately $400 million in the past two months. Notably, the participation of both industrial capital and international investors in this round further enhances ZERON’s capabilities in industrial collaboration and global expansion. ZERON To date, ZERON’s shareholder roster includes power battery giant CATL, energy and mining state-owned enterprises such as Zijin Mining and Shandong Energy Group, autonomous driving leader Momenta, as well as well-known VCs/PEs like Nio Capital and Yuanjing Capital. This diverse mix of “industrial capital + international capital + local VC” brings strategic value to ZERON that far exceeds the funding itself. Self-developed Jushi 2.0 integrated e-axle Since its founding in 2022, ZERON has launched its flagship truck series, “Jingzhe” and “Xiaoman,” both equipped with self-developed e-axles and three-source heat pump systems. In the field of intelligent driving, ZERON has achieved the industry’s first deployment of autonomous driving technology based on end-to-end and multimodal large models. The technology is already undergoing testing and operation in real customer scenarios, with plans to achieve regular driverless operation by the second quarter of 2026. Data shows that as of the end of 2025, cumulative sales reached nearly 1,600 units. Notably, in the second half of 2025, sales grew nearly 300% quarter-over-quarter, making ZERON one of the fastest-growing companies in the new energy heavy-duty truck sector. China’s new energy heavy-duty truck penetration rate from 2023 to Q1 2026 The enthusiasm of the capital market is inseparable from the explosive growth of the new energy heavy-duty truck market. In 2025, China’s new energy heavy-duty trucks entered the industry’s mainstream track with a year-on-year growth rate of 181.8%. Market penetration jumped from 13.6% in 2024 to 28.9%, with full-year sales exceeding 230,000 units, surpassing industry expectations. Entering 2026, the growth momentum has only intensified. From January to April this year, cumulative sales of new energy heavy-duty trucks reached 44,000 units, with penetration exceeding 26% in the first quarter. In April alone, terminal sales of new energy heavy-duty trucks grew more than 25% month-on-month and over 60% year-on-year, with penetration approaching 30%. The industry generally predicts that the penetration rate for new energy heavy-duty trucks is expected to reach 35%-40% for the full year of 2026, and could exceed 55% by 2030, surpassing both diesel and natural gas heavy-duty trucks.
