There are so many new technologies and exciting developments coming out of China these days that will fundamentally change our world, whether in medicine, materials science, telecommunications, or energy. But today, I want to tell you how, in just a matter of decades or less, transportation around the world will be completely transformed, and no, not just by electric vehicles. I’m talking about taking the same electrical revolution we’re seeing in EVs and expanding it into the much more ambitious realm of maritime and aeronautical transportation. I’m talking about fully electric commercial airplanes and boats. If you have any knowledge of the sheer amount of electrical power that would be required to meet the needs of modern vehicles in these industries, that might come as a shock to some of you. But if you think about the difference in technology between the year 1900, when the airplane hadn’t yet been invented, and literally putting a man on the moon in 1969, it puts things into perspective. Technological advancement has only accelerated since then, reaching nearly exponential progress year after year across many fields. Chinese electrification and battery technology are among those fields, with China having single-handedly shattered numerous projections for both electric vehicle and renewable energy adoption, as well as projected gas consumption, because analysts vastly underestimated the speed at which these technologies would develop. This technology is not only being applied to more established uses, such as storing electricity generated from wind and solar power and powering electric vehicle batteries, but to innovative marine and aerial applications as well.
China Zorrilla is currently the world’s largest fully electric ship, operating with over 250 tons worth of batteries
Electric boats, specifically, have moved far beyond the theoretical and are already filling several maritime niches while expanding into more. For example, short to medium distance ferries are perfectly suited to electric-powered boats compared to oil-powered ones and have already seen rapid adoption. If you have ever taken a ferry between different islands in Japan, across the fjords of Norway, or perhaps on the Great Lakes in the United States, the intense smell of petrol during the journey is unmistakable. That’s because gas-powered ferries, tugboats, and vehicle ferries operating across these rivers, lakes, and short ocean crossings require massive amounts of fuel. That’s where battery technology is rapidly transforming the industry, as the frequent stops between ports in relatively close proximity offer plenty of opportunities to swap out batteries. These distances are perfectly suited to the current range of electric boats and existing battery technology, and we can expect to see this entire industry transition before the end of the decade. The real challenge, however, lies in the transoceanic journeys of the shipping industry, where both the distances traveled and the amount of cargo carried are much, much greater. We are still a long way from having a viable single-charge battery capable of taking a ship from a Chinese port all the way to a port in Europe or the Americas, but it’s looking like we won’t need to wait for a battery that can make that journey in one trip anyway. These massive cargo ships don’t simply sail from China to their final destination in one go; they often make numerous stops at ports in various countries to refuel or to load and unload goods. These stops also present ideal opportunities to swap out batteries on these cargo ships, so instead of relying on a single battery for one massive journey, the ship could exchange depleted batteries for fresh ones during its already scheduled port calls.
Various CATL powered electric ships including the jining 6006 pictured on the bottom right
The powerhouse battery company CATL has been spearheading investment and development in this maritime battery sector, forecasting that it could potentially capture the market for this trillion-dollar industry. In October 2025, the company unveiled the Jining 6006, a pure electric multipurpose cargo ship that served as a proof of concept for battery-swapping technology on these longer ocean journeys. As you can see from the picture, the size of the ship is certainly nothing to scoff at, but it is still nowhere near the gargantuan scale of the largest cargo ships in the industry. But you can expect this first step to advance rapidly before the end of the decade. There is simply too much potential to ignore, and there are more than enough incentives for companies to invest in this technology.
There are three major pillars of benefits to electrifying shipping and air travel. The first is economics. These massive ships use enormous amounts of heavy fuel oil to power their engines. This is a massive expense for shipping companies, but more importantly, by the very nature of the fuel source, it can only be used once. Once the fuel is burned, that’s it. Battery power is not only cheaper, but it is, of course, not a one-time-use energy source, and batteries can provide many years, if not decades, of service before degrading. Even then, much of the battery can be recycled. This massive economic incentive is only compounded by the second major benefit of electrification, which is the geopolitical factor. The war in Iran has shown just how vulnerable worldwide supply chains can be. Being reliant on oil as the primary fuel source also means you’re at the whim of the geopolitical situation in oil-producing countries. Disruptions to fuel supplies can quite literally shut down an entire economy. As a result, electrification isn’t just an economic matter but also one of national security, sovereignty, and independence. The third major benefit of electrification (which, in an ideal world, should perhaps be the preeminent consideration) is its enormous potential to help mitigate the effects of climate change. Three percent of all global emissions are the direct result of the shipping industry alone. Electrifying this industry wouldn’t just make a huge difference at the macro level by reducing carbon dioxide emissions in the atmosphere, but at the local level as well by eliminating the toxic byproducts that pollute the environments through which these massive ships travel. All of these factors can also be applied to aviation.
Chinese first of its kind aircraft named “matrix”. The electric plane market has numerous startups working on various designs of aircraft. We can expect rapid development and optimization of designs in coming years
Electric planes are following a similar path to that of electric ships. While it will probably be more than a decade before we see electric planes replacing the traditional long-haul passenger flights that you might associate with air travel, we are already seeing viable electric aircraft for short-distance routes and small cargo flights. The weight of the batteries poses a much greater challenge for air travel than it does for transportation by water. But for these shorter distances, there are many start-ups stepping in to fill this emerging market. The impact of electric planes on the aviation industry, even if initially limited to short-haul flights, is enormous. Thirty-three percent of all emissions from the aviation industry are caused by short-haul flights of 1,500 kilometers or less. While it might be a long time before you’re taking an electric plane from Chicago to Tokyo, your letter or package in the mail could very well have been delivered to your city by an electric aircraft, or you might even take an electric short-haul flight between nearby cities like Washington, D.C., and New York City.
The electrification of these two major pillars of transportation will transform our world. The electric vehicle wave has been slower to reach North America, and seeing an EV is still the exception rather than the norm. However, when I’m traveling in China, especially in places like Shanghai, EVs are ubiquitous and have reached parity with, if not surpassed, gas-powered vehicles. When you become so accustomed to seeing electric vehicles, gas-powered cars, and the sounds and smell of gasoline that come along with them, begin to feel like an antiquated and obsolete technology. It may be hard for us to imagine now, but in just a matter of decades, we could start to have that same feeling extend to all modes of transportation. And judging by the speed of technological advancement, I wouldn’t rule out this transformation occurring even sooner than that.