According to news recently released by CCTV, in March 2026, there were more than 12,000 complaints related to OTA power locking by car companies on the national 12315 platform in one month, a year-on-year increase of 273%. In the end, official supervision intervened. 8 car companies were interviewed, 3 were opened for investigation due to violations, and 2 car companies withdrew the controversial upgrade package and promised to restore performance.
Power locking means that some car companies privately modify the parameters of the vehicle battery management system through OTA remote upgrades or in-store software updates without the consent of consumers, limiting the upper limit of power battery charging, discharge depth, charge and discharge power, etc., resulting in reduced battery life, slower charging, and reduced performance.
Recently, there is news on the Internet that although the regulatory authorities have not yet announced the complete list, multiple sources speculate that the eight car companies that have been interviewed include BYD, Tesla, Xpeng, Ideal, NIO, Wenjie, Jikrypton, and GAC Aian. Among them, Tesla, Xpeng, and GAC Aian have been put on file for serious violations.
However, the eight car companies on the list posted online collectively denied being interviewed.
BYD’s News Anti-Counterfeiting Office’s official Weibo stated that the rumors related to “BYD being interviewed and filed” are purely false rumors. The company has obtained evidence and will hold the rumor mongers legally responsible.
Tesla stated that this news is false information. All Tesla software updates have been strictly tested and filed, so please feel free to use them.
Xpeng Group’s Legal Department’s official Weibo stated that some social accounts used AI applications to maliciously hype information such as “8 car companies were interviewed” and “3 companies were investigated for suspected violations”, and Xpeng was included in the list. After verification, the company has not received such interviews recently, and has not been investigated.
The official Weibo of the Legal Department of GAC Aian stated that the information online that the company was interviewed and included in the investigation list due to the OTA "power lock" issue is purely fabricated. The company has never been interviewed by the competent authorities for related matters, and has not been investigated.
The official Weibo of Jikrypton’s Legal Department stated that Jikrypton has not received any relevant “interviews” mentioned in such false information. In response to malicious attacks, slander and rumors, we have collected and fixed evidence and will safeguard our rights and interests in accordance with the law.
In addition, Ideal, Weilai, and Wenjie also denied being interviewed.