KATHMANDU: Chinese automaker BYD now has more than 1.02 million employees worldwide, exceeding the combined workforce of Toyota, General Motors (GM), Ford and Tesla.
BYD chairman Wang Chuanfu shared the figures at the 33rd China Society of Automotive Engineers Annual Congress. The company had around 869,600 employees at the end of 2025, meaning it added approximately 150,000 employees in the first 10 months of 2026.
Around 960,000 employees work in China, while 60,000 are based overseas. Up to 120,000 employees work in research and development, focusing on batteries, electric motors, chips and electronic controls.
BYD’s large workforce reflects its broad business operations, which include batteries, semiconductors, energy storage and electronics manufacturing, in addition to vehicles.
However, the company is expanding its workforce despite slower vehicle sales. BYD sold around 3.13 million vehicles in the first nine months of 2026, down 3.9% year-on-year.
Overseas sales remain a bright spot, rising 92.7% to around 1.34 million units during the same period. International markets accounted for about 43% of its total sales.
