March 20 (Reuters) - Chinese electric vehicle maker

Xpeng ( XPEV ) reported its maiden quarterly profit, riding on

strong sales of higher-margin models and lucrative technology

partnerships.

Advanced driver-assistance technology and fast charging

helped Xpeng's ( XPEV ) higher-margin P7 model stand out in China's

crowded EV market, where it also competes with Tesla's

Model 3 and Xiaomi's ( XIACF ) SU7. The model helped drive a 30%

jump in the company's vehicle sales to 19.07 billion yuan ($2.77

billion) in the October-December period.

Xpeng ( XPEV ) has been trying to license its technology to other

automakers and rebrand itself as a "physical AI" company,

following in Tesla's footsteps. The strategy allows it to

leverage its driver assistance system and "Turing" AI chips, and

has led to a tie-up with Volkswagen, which will

develop new EVs in China using Xpeng's ( XPEV ) technology.

The first of these models, the ID. UNYX 08, began mass

production last week, and Xpeng ( XPEV ) expects the collaboration to

generate meaningful revenue from technology service fees.

Overall, revenue rose to 22.25 billion yuan in the fourth

quarter, exceeding analysts' average estimate of 22.13 billion

yuan, according to data compiled by LSEG. Xpeng ( XPEV ) posted a profit

of 383.21 million yuan, compared with a loss of 1.33 billion

yuan a year ago.

Analysts have said Xpeng's ( XPEV ) second-generation "Vision to

Action" architecture, designed to enable more human-like

autonomous driving, is a key differentiator that could boost

margins and sales of its premium models in the coming quarters.

The company expects first-quarter revenue between 12.20

billion yuan and 13.28 billion yuan, below analysts' average

estimate of 17.38 billion yuan.

Separately, Xpeng ( XPEV ) said it will launch EVs for the Latin

American market at an event in Mexico later this month.

($1 = 6.8857 Chinese yuan renminbi)