XPeng plans to launch its mass-market Mona brand in overseas markets next year in a move that will boost competition with its Chinese rivals and established automakers in the electric vehicle arena.

US-listed shares of XPeng gained 4.9% in morning trading.

In a wide-ranging interview with CNBC on Tuesday, XPeng CEO He Xiaopeng said the company’s international expansion is moving faster than he expected and signaled, for the first time, that the company is open to acquiring other electric carmakers.

XPeng launched the Mona brand in China last year with the debut of the Mona M03 electric coupe. The car was launched with an aggressive starting price of 119,000 Chinese yuan, which is just under $17,000.

XPeng will launch Mona-branded cars in Europe next year, He told CNBC. This is the first time the launch has been reported.

“In 2026 you can expect a variety of Mona products launched into the Chinese and European markets, as well as in rest of the world,” He said, in comments translated by CNBC.

“I believe by then, what we launch will be very proven and very excellent vehicles.”

These cars will likely be cheaper than some of XPeng’s higher-end models such as the P7 and G6.

It comes as Chinese automakers are aggressively launching cars outside of China and finding success in Europe where companies like BYD have continued to grow.

Adding even more competitively priced cars into the mix overseas will ramp up competition in markets like Europe where traditional automakers such as Mercedes, BMW and Volkswagen have launched their own electric vehicles to fend off Chinese rivals.

Chinese firms’ expansion into Europe comes at a time when Tesla continues to record declining sales in the region.