Technology

A ChatGPT Moment For EVs? The Rise Of Megawatt Superchargers

  • 'ChatGPT' was a watershed moment in the popular adoption of AI. Will super-chargers deliver a similar milestone for EVs or are they simply the latest toys of EV-nerds?

Amit MishraApr 08, 2025, 12:38 PM | Updated 12:20 PM IST
Representative Image (Photo: Delta Electronics India)

Representative Image (Photo: Delta Electronics India)


Reaching electric vehicle (EV) charging speeds that rival the quick pit stop of filling up with petrol or diesel has long been considered the “holy grail” of EV innovation.

Now, that dream is inching closer to reality—thanks to some breakthroughs from China’s tech and automotive giants.

The platform offers peak charging power of 1,000 kilowatts (kW) or 1 megawatt (MW) in just five minutes, enough to give a vehicle 400 kms of driving range, said BYD’s founder Wang Chuanfu.

Wang Chuanfu, BYD’s founder, unveiling "Super e-platform"

"This is the first time in the industry that the unit of megawatt (charge) has been achieved on charging power," he said.

For context, that’s double the power of Tesla’s Superchargers, which top out at 500kW and deliver around 275 km of range in 15 minutes.

Not to be outdone, EV brand Zeekr and tech titan Huawei have also thrown their hats into the ring, each unveiling their own megawatt-class charging technology.

Fast Charging’s True Fix: Range Anxiety

Beyond the buzz, what’s the point of all this speed in charging?

Despite their futuristic flair and eco-friendly promise, EVs continue to wrestle with one major speed bump on the road to widespread adoption: range anxiety.

Range anxiety is the fear that our EV won’t make it to the next charging station before the battery runs dry. And while battery ranges have steadily improved, that lingering doubt still haunts many potential buyers.

Sure, increasing battery range is one way to ease that worry. But there’s an equally important fix: make recharging so fast and easy that we barely have to think about it—even mid-journey.

“Because there are limits to the amount of range you can achieve and the number of batteries that an EV can hold, faster charging will be part of the solution — but it comes with trade-offs,” said Andreas Breiter, who co-leads McKinsey’s Center for Future Mobility in North America, last year.

EV charging speed is usually measured by how quickly we can go from 10 per cent to 80 per cent battery. Why that range? Dropping below 10 per cent can be risky for battery health, and charging from 80 per cent to 100 per cent takes much longer due to the way battery chemistry works.

According to the US Department of Transportation, a “Level 1” charger that plugs into a common residential 120 volt AC outlet offers about 1 kilowatt of power — enough to charge an EV from empty to 80 per cent in 40-50 hours.

Level 2 equipment— the kind used for overnight charging can step things up to around 20kW—enough to get us road-ready in 4 to 10 hours.

Then there’s Level 3, the speed demons of the charging world. Also known as DC fast chargers (DCFC) , they skip the onboard system and feed power directly to the battery at hundreds of kilowatts, drastically reducing charge times.

With Level 3, Battery Electric Vehicles (BEVs) can charge up to 80 per cent in as little as 20 minutes to an hour. Plug-in Hybrids (PHEVs) currently on the market, however, usually aren’t compatible with these high-speed stations.

California-based electric carmaker, Tesla Superchargers offer up to 250kW, giving 75 miles of charge in five minutes, while Huawei’s top-of-the-range charger offers 600kW.

Despite advancements in EV technology, "charging anxiety" is still a major concern, Wang candidly stated at the launch event, "The ultimate solution is to make charging as quick as refueling a gasoline car."

The Great Power Race

Right now, China is ground zero in a high-stakes, high-voltage race. It’s no longer about who makes the fastest EV—it’s about who builds the fastest charger.

BYD struck first with its 1MW charger —enough to top up a battery in the time it takes to grab a coffee. But BYD didn’t hold the crown for long.

Just two weeks later, Zeekr, the high-performance brand under Geely (also behind Volvo and Polestar), came out swinging with an even bolder claim: a 1.2 megawatt charger—the fastest ever revealed.

Image: Zeekr via Weibo

The company teased the tech on Weibo, following VP Zhao Yuhui’s remarks at the China EV100 Forum. The fully liquid-cooled system is expected to hit the market in Q2 2025, delivering 1.2MW per charging gun—200kW more than BYD’s best.

In January 2025, at the Consumer Electronics Show (CES) in Las Vegas, the company announced its plans to build a Zeekr-branded charging network globally, starting with Australia as one of its key initial markets.

Huawei is waiting in the wings with an even bigger flex. Set to launch on April 22, its upcoming charger promises 1.44 megawatts (rounded to 1.5MW), capable of adding a staggering 20kWh per minute and charging a car from 0 to 100 per cent in just 15 minutes. If the numbers hold up, this would make it the most powerful passenger EV charger on the planet.

Huawei 1.5 MW charger. Credit: Huawei

Unlike Zeekr’s and BYD’s superchargers, which are aimed at passenger cars, Huawei’s 1.5 MW charger will be aimed at heavy-duty trucks. “For heavy-duty trucks to be fully electrified, the charging time must be under 30 minutes,” Hou Jinlong, Huawei’s president of Digital Energy said.

Of course, not everyone is convinced we need five-minute charging for daily use. Still, one thing is clear: China is dominating the ultra-fast charging game, while most Western automakers are cruising in the slow lane.

Even Tesla, the poster child of EV innovation, is playing catch-up. Its upcoming 500kW V4 Supercharger that supports up to 500kW charging for EVs and 1.2MW for Tesla’s commercial Semi trucks is slated for a 2025 rollout in Europe.

Tesla's V4 Supercharger stations (Image: Tesla)

So, is this a glimpse of the future or just a race for headlines?

China’s EV giants might be chasing bragging rights as much as practical benefits. But if you want to charge your car faster than you can order takeout, you’ll be looking East.

Founded in 2020 by former Ather Energy executives Arun Vinayak and Sanjay Balyal, Exponent has built a fully integrated charging ecosystem from the ground up. Its proprietary trio—the battery pack, charging station, and connector—delivers a 15-minute rapid charge while maintaining an impressive 3,000-cycle warranty, all powered by commercially available lithium-ion cells.

“There was a lot of excitement on the BYD 1MW charging. But we’ve already got 1MW charging right here. We’re actually doing this on standard off-the-shelf cells, which makes it 10X more accessible,” tweeted Exponent Energy’s CEO, Arun Vinayak.

The Reality Check

Let’s be real: most EV owners charge overnight at home. So, a five-minute megacharge might be cool, but is it necessary? It is important to ask these questions because these new ultra-fast chargers aren’t just fast—they’re power-hungry.

Delivering 1.2 to 1.5 megawatts, as claimed by Zeekr and Huawei, requires serious grid infrastructure upgrades, hefty buffer battery systems like BYD’s, and a fundamental rethink of how we move energy around cities.

Analysts have cautioned that the mass adoption of ultra-fast charging infrastructure could place significant strain on existing power grids. Meeting this surge in demand won’t just happen organically—it will require substantial investments, and coordination across the energy ecosystem.

Take BYD’s Megawatt Flash Charging as a prime example. To deliver its headline-grabbing performance—400 kilometers of range in just five minutes—the system relies on ultra-high voltage (1,000V) and ultra-high current (1,000A). This translates into what the company calls the fastest peak charging speed in the world: “1 second for 2 kilometers.”

Extreme charging heats up battery cells, accelerates chemical degradation, and can reduce the overall lifespan of already expensive battery packs.

“The biggest problem with fast charging is the temperature of batteries,” said Kim Je-young, chief technology officer at LG Energy Solution, the world’s largest non-Chinese battery producer.

Lee Hang-koo, head of South Korea’s Jeonbuk Institute of Automotive Convergence Technology, echoed the concern. His research points to a clear link between superfast charging and diminished battery life, not to mention the increased risk of thermal incidents such as overheating and fires.

And it’s not just the batteries that need an upgrade. The charging stations themselves must meet far more demanding technical standards.

To that end, BYD has developed the world’s first all-liquid-cooled Megawatt Flash Charging terminal system, with a peak output of up to 1,360kW. The company plans to build more than 4,000 of these high-spec stations across China in the coming years.

BYD's all-liquid-cooled Megawatt Flash Charging terminal system,

But none of this comes cheap.

At the end of the day, whether through direct pricing, energy tariffs, or vehicle costs, much of the burden will fall—not on the automakers or utilities—but on the consumer.

The Final Blow—or a Long Road Ahead?

Technology leaders are unanimous in their opinion that battery capacity technology has reached a critical point that can provide the same driving experience as internal combustion locomotives. 

So, does a five-minute, 400-kilometer charge mark the death knell for gas-powered vehicles?

But don’t expect ICE vehicles to throw in the towel just yet.

ICE cars still dominate the roads for a reason. Their infrastructure is global, mature, and instantly available. You don’t need to check apps for availability or wonder if the grid can handle your trip. They’re also still cheaper upfront in many regions, especially where subsidies are weak and EV options remain limited.

Even with megachargers, EVs face headwinds. Scaling battery production is a global logistics challenge. Rural and underserved areas remain charging deserts, and upgrading the grid to support a nationwide network of megawatt chargers won’t happen overnight—or cheaply.

Yes, ultra-fast charging changes the game. It chips away at ICE dominance. It silences some of the loudest EV skeptics. But the fall of the internal combustion engine won’t come with a crash—it’ll come as a slow fade.

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