AI TRENDS | China To Tighten Battery Industry Oversight And Push Solid-State R&D

China's Ministry of Industry and Information Technology said it will step up oversight of the power battery sector, including tighter competition rules, production-capacity monitoring and early warnings, quality-improvement measures, and stronger supervision of product consistency and safety, according to ETNet. At the 2026 World Power Battery Conference in Yibin, Sichuan, Vice Minister Xiong Jijun said the ministry will also support breakthroughs in all-solid-state batteries, sodium-ion batteries and lithium-metal batteries, accelerate research and application of new materials and processes, and promote standards for safety, cycle life, carbon footprint and recycling. It also plans to expand applications in new-energy heavy trucks, battery swapping, vehicle-grid interaction, energy storage, transport and embodied intelligence.