CATL CEO analyzes the gap in battery technology talent between China and Germany, emphasizing the importance of educational foundation
Recently, Zeng Yuqun, CEO of CATL, appeared on a podcast hosted by Nicolai Tangen, CEO of Norwegian Bank Investment Management, and expressed his views on the competitive situation in the field of global battery technology. Nicolai Tangen pointed out that globally, two-thirds of research papers on battery technology are written by Chinese scholars, while the United States accounts for only 12%. In addition, China has more than 50 graduate programs specifically for battery technology, while the United States has much fewer. Faced with such data comparisons, Tangen couldn't help asking: How can other countries compete effectively with China in the battery industry?
Zeng Yuqun responded with a conversation between him and former German Chancellor Angela Merkel. Merkel once asked during her visit to China that Germany, as a traditional automobile manufacturing powerhouse, has a deep accumulation in engine and gearbox manufacturing, but why is it difficult to achieve the same success in battery manufacturing? In this regard, Zeng Yuqun explained that although electrochemistry is not considered a high-end field worldwide, many top universities and students prefer to choose more popular professional directions such as finance or semiconductors, but in China, due to the different allocation of educational resources and market demand, many universities continue to invest in electrochemical research, which has also laid the foundation for China to cultivate a large number of battery technology talents.
According to Zeng Yuqun, CATL currently has a strong team of 21,000 engineers, including hundreds of doctors and many master's students. These talents not only have a solid professional background, but also have accumulated three to five years of practical work experience, becoming an important force in promoting technological innovation in enterprises and even the entire industry. He believes that for countries that hope to catch up with or even surpass China in battery technology, it is crucial to strengthen education investment in related fields.
It is worth noting that although China has made remarkable achievements in the field of battery technology, Zeng Yuqun also emphasized the importance of continuous innovation. He said that the key to CATL's ability to maintain its leading position lies in its high attention to research and development and its unremitting pursuit of new technologies. In the future, as the global demand for clean energy grows, it is foreseeable that the competition in battery technology will become more intense. Only by constantly breaking through ourselves can we remain invincible in the fierce market competition.
This dialogue not only reveals China's dominant position in battery manufacturing, the core component of new energy vehicles, but also provides valuable inspiration for other countries seeking to make a difference in this field. By increasing investment in education, especially basic science education, it is expected to cultivate more high-quality technical talents for the country, thereby enhancing overall competitiveness. In the context of global energy transformation, how to seize the development opportunities of new energy vehicles has become a common issue faced by governments and enterprises.