IM Motors to Launch “Ultra Agent” Powered by Alibaba Qwen AI on March 18
The AI revolution in auto industry is also making headway as China’s electric vehicle startup IM Motors will launch a new artificial-intelligence system called “Ultra Agent” on March 18, signaling how rapidly AI agents are entering the automotive sector.
The system is built on Qwen, a suite of large language models developed by Alibaba Group. According to the company, the new platform uses dozens of specialized AI agents acting as “digital engineers” to accelerate vehicle design and development.
The announcement highlights how the global AI agent trend—recently fueled by open-source projects such as OpenClaw—is expanding beyond software into industries like automotive manufacturing.
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Key Takeaways
What is IM Motors’ Ultra Agent?
Ultra Agent is an AI-agent system built on Alibaba’s Qwen models that automates and assists with vehicle engineering and development tasks.
When will Ultra Agent launch?
The company plans to officially unveil it on March 18, 2026, during a dedicated AI event for the automotive sector.
How many AI agents are involved?
IM Motors has developed more than 30 specialized AI agents, each responsible for tasks like project selection, documentation, design assistance, and consulting.
Will AI replace human engineers?
No. IM Motors says the system is designed to assist and collaborate with human engineers, not replace them.
Why is this significant?
It marks one of the first large-scale uses of AI agents in automotive R&D, potentially speeding up vehicle development dramatically.
The Companies Behind the Project
Founded in November 2020, IM Motors is a joint venture between:
- SAIC Motor (majority shareholder)
- Alibaba Group
- Shanghai Zhangjiang Hi-Tech Park Development
The Shanghai-based EV company focuses on premium intelligent electric vehicles and advanced digital vehicle platforms.
In November 2025, the Shanghai Municipal Commission of Economy and Informatization highlighted IM Motors’ AI development efforts in an official WeChat post, noting that the company had already deployed dozens of AI agents in its workflow.
How “Digital Engineers” Work
IM Motors says it has built over 30 AI agents, each specialized for a particular task within the engineering and product development process.
Examples include agents that:
- Evaluate project proposals
- Package and distribute design requirements
- Generate engineering documentation
- Provide technical consulting assistance
When multiple agents collaborate, they form what the company calls “digital engineers.”
These digital engineers can independently perform complex tasks such as:
- Retrieving regulatory standards from databases
- Drafting requirement documents for suppliers
- Generating design suggestions for engineers
According to IM Motors AI expert Luo Wenfa, this multi-agent collaboration significantly reduces time spent on repetitive engineering work.
How AI Is Transforming Vehicle Design
One of the most notable impacts is in automotive component design.
Previously:
- Designing a hood reinforcement plate took 2–3 hours.
- Engineers often needed 10 or more iterations to finalize a design.
With the new AI agent system:
- Engineers input a few design parameters.
- AI can generate dozens or hundreds of structural models within seconds.
- The models appear instantly as 3D components inside engineering software.
This generative design capability allows engineers to evaluate far more design possibilities than before.
How AI Agents Assist Car Engineering
- Parameter Input
Engineers enter basic constraints and performance targets into design software. - Agent Coordination
Multiple AI agents analyze requirements, regulations, and previous designs. - Generative Design Creation
The system produces numerous possible 3D structures for a component. - Automated Compliance Checks
Agents cross-check designs with regulatory standards and supplier constraints. - Human Evaluation
Engineers review AI proposals and select or refine the best design. - Documentation Generation
AI automatically prepares supplier documentation and technical specifications.
Inside IM Motors’ “Digital Engineer” Strategy
IM Motors CTO Xiang Jiao says the company faced three major challenges while developing AI-assisted engineering:
- Limited structured engineering data
- Complex knowledge embedded in human expertise
- Difficulty translating experience into machine-readable formats
To overcome this, the company parameterized and structured the knowledge of human engineers, essentially converting expert insights into datasets that AI systems can use.
Xiang described the process using a metaphor:
Building the AI ecosystem is like planting lotus flowers. Once a tipping point is reached, the pond suddenly fills with blooms.
The idea is that once enough structured knowledge exists, AI innovation accelerates rapidly.
Alibaba’s Role in the AI Push
As one of IM Motors’ founding investors, Alibaba provides the AI foundation through its Qwen model family.
Earlier this month, the company open-sourced four compact models from its Qwen3.5 series, designed for:
- lightweight devices
- edge computing
- resource-limited hardware
The models gained international attention when Elon Musk, CEO of Tesla, praised them on the social platform X for their “impressive intelligence density.”
Common Questions
Will AI agents replace automotive engineers?
No. IM Motors says AI will augment engineers rather than replace them, handling repetitive tasks while humans set direction.
Why are AI agents important for the auto industry?
They can dramatically shorten development cycles, reduce design costs, and explore more engineering possibilities.
Are other automakers using AI agents?
Yes. Many automakers already use AI-assisted simulation and generative design, but large-scale multi-agent systems are still emerging.
What makes Alibaba’s Qwen models different?
Qwen models are known for strong multilingual capability and open-source availability, which helps developers build customized AI applications.
Could AI agents eventually design entire cars?
Experts say AI could eventually assist in complete vehicle architecture design, but human oversight will remain critical.
Conclusion
The launch of Ultra Agent by IM Motors represents a major step toward AI-driven automotive engineering. By deploying dozens of specialized AI agents that collaborate as digital engineers, the company aims to dramatically accelerate vehicle design while keeping human experts in control.
As AI agents move from software into manufacturing, the March 18 launch may signal a new era where intelligent systems help design the cars of the future.