Recently, the 2025 Ernst & Young Entrepreneur of the Year awards ceremony concluded successfully in Hong Kong. Mr. Wang Yanqing, Founder and Chairman of Lead Intelligent Equipment (hereafter referred to as LEAD), was recognized as the only leader from the new energy manufacturing sector this year, honoring over two decades of entrepreneurial spirit and pioneering achievements in the field of intelligent new energy equipment. At the awards ceremony, Chairman Wang sat down with Yicai for an exclusive interview, detailing LEAD’s founding vision and its development roadmap for the next decade.
Exclusive Interview Highlights
“If we are to do it, we must aim to be the first.” Chairman Wang’s explanation of the company’s name reveals the core of LEAD’s development. From its roots in lithium–ion battery equipment to becoming a globally leading provider of intelligent manufacturing solutions for the new energy sector, LEAD’s evolution mirrors China’s journey in high-end manufacturing—from follower, to peer competitor, to frontrunner.
The name Lead is both a label and a promise. Wang emphasizes that it embodies the firm commitment to lead the industry through technological innovation, anchored by a steadfast pursuit of technical excellence. In an era of explosive growth in the new energy sector, this principle has become LEAD’s guiding star through cyclical market shifts.
Over the past decade, China’s lithium–ion battery equipment industry has undergone a transformative metamorphosis. According to Wang, the sector has reshaped itself along two critical dimensions: reversing market positions and elevating manufacturing capabilities. Within this transformation, LEAD’s most strategically significant leap has been the pioneering implementation of the full-line lithium–ion battery delivery model.
“It was extremely challenging at the time, but opportunities were hidden within.” Wang Yanqing keenly recognized the approaching TWh era, in which leading battery manufacturers demand both rapid capacity expansion and strict production line consistency. “Only by breaking down equipment silos can we truly address our customers’ pain points,” he noted. This insight enabled LEAD to build a defensible moat that is difficult to replicate. Today, LEAD stands as the world’s only lithium–ion battery full-line equipment provider with 100% fully independent intellectual property rights.
In the face of industry homogenization, Wang has consistently chosen to pursue breakthroughs rather than compete sideways. “Technology battles are the decisive battles, and LEAD invests in the future.” He emphasizes that LEAD does not engage in price wars; instead, it directs R&D resources toward market needs over the next five years, choosing “the harder but more valuable path” to avoid low-level competition.
Today, LEAD demonstrates the qualities of a true industrial “chain leader,” a responsibility Wang takes seriously. In his view, a leading enterprise must not only operate compliantly, but also act as a “pioneer in technological breakthroughs,” a “glue” for the industrial chain, and a “cradle” for nurturing talent.
Looking ahead to the next decade, Wang’s vision extends far beyond equipment. He aspires to transform LEAD into a world-class leader in intelligent manufacturing, and ultimately a core architect of the future of smart energy. As he puts it, “If new energy is the engine that changes the world, LEAD aims to be the ‘super factory’ that manufactures this engine.”
