Category: Li Auto

Li Auto to hold 1st ‘Family Tech Day’ on Jun 17

's poster hints that it may announce developments related to its assisted driving system NOA, and a battery that supports ultra-fast charging.  |  Li Auto US | Li Auto HK

(NYSE: NIO) and (NYSE: XPEV) both have their own signature annual events, NIO Day and 1024 Tech Day, respectively and now Li Auto (NASDAQ: LI) is creating a similar one.

Li Auto will hold its first Family Tech Day event on Saturday, June 17, starting at 20:00, the extended-range electric vehicle (EREV) maker announced on its social media accounts yesterday.

The company's poster yesterday mentioned the words "5C" and "NOA," hinting that it may announce progress on a battery that supports ultra-fast charging, as well as its NOA (Navigation on ADAS) system.

"Li Auto's Family Tech Day launch ushers in the era of dual-energy," its poster reads.

Li Auto has been targeting family users, and the three SUV models currently on sale -- Li L7, Li L8 and Li L9 -- are designed to cater to such groups.

On April 18, Li Auto unveiled its all-electric solution on the first day of the Shanghai auto show, saying that the company has officially entered the dual-energy era, a phase in which the EREV and battery electric vehicle (BEV) product lines are developing in parallel.

The company's all-electric solution is based on an 800 V high-voltage platform that enables a BEV to get 400 kilometers of range on a 10-minute charge, it said at the time.

By 2025, Li Auto's product array will include a super flagship model, five EREVs, and five BEVs, it said.

Li Auto's first all-electric model will be the world's first to feature 's 4C Qilin Battery, it said at the launch in April. The model is expected to be an MPV to be released by the end of the year.

C refers to the battery's charging multiplier, and 4C means that the pack can theoretically be fully charged in a quarter of an hour.

It's worth noting that when Li Auto previewed its Family Tech Day on May 31, it poster showed text that included "4C".

In the poster released yesterday, that text was changed to "5C," perhaps implying that it will use a faster-charging CATL battery.

In terms of assisted driving software, Li Auto announced its latest generation of assisted driving system, AD Max 3.0, on April 18, and said the software will be free for life.

Li Auto's current assisted driving systems include AD Max and AD Pro. AD Max 2.0 is powered by NVIDIA's Orin X chip and Hesai's LiDAR, while AD Pro 2.0 is powered by Horizon Robotics' Journey 5 chip.

AD Max 3.0's all-scenario NOA will begin internal testing this quarter and will cover more than 100 cities by the end of the year, Li Auto previously said.

Li Auto delivers record 28,277 vehicles in May, surpassing RMB 10 billion in monthly revenue for 1st time

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Q1 earnings: How does NIO compare to XPeng and Li Auto?

and both saw net losses in the first quarter, while posted net income.

With the release of NIO's (NYSE: NIO) financial results, the trio of US-listed Chinese electric vehicles all reported first-quarter earnings.

With this article, we try to give readers a quick look at how the financials of NIO, XPeng (NYSE: XPEV), and Li Auto (NASDAQ: LI) compare in a few charts.

It should be noted that NIO and XPeng currently offer only battery electric vehicles (BEVs), a fast-growing but small market in China that currently accounts for about 30 percent of all passenger car sales.

Li Auto's full range of vehicles are extended-range electric vehicles (EREVs), essentially plug-in hybrids, targeting a much larger market.

In terms of quarterly deliveries, all three companies are essentially continuing to grow in 2020-2021.

In the first quarter of 2022 so far, NIO and XPeng have had a weak delivery performance, while Li Auto's has continued to grow, especially in the last two quarters.

In the first quarter of the year, Li Auto delivered 52,584 vehicles, while NIO and XPeng delivered 31,041 and 18,230, respectively.

Since all three companies derive their revenue primarily from car sales, the change in deliveries essentially corresponds to the change in revenue.

In the first quarter, Li Auto's revenue was RMB 18.8 billion, NIO was RMB 10.7 billion and XPeng was RMB 4.03 billion.

Their gross margins have been relatively stable over the past two years, with NIO and XPeng declining significantly over the past two quarters due to promotional activities.

Li Auto's gross margin has rebounded over the past two quarters after seeing a decline in the third quarter of last year.

NIO and XPeng has been continuing to face net losses while Li Auto has been profitable for multiple quarters.

In the first quarter, NIO had a net loss of RMB 4.74 billion, XPeng had a net loss of RMB 2.34 billion, and Li Auto achieved net income of RMB 934 million.

NIO Q1 earnings miss expectations, gross margin drops to 1.5%

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Li Auto Beijing plant expected to start production in Aug, report says

's Beijing plant is expected to see its first vehicle roll off the line by September, a local media report said in March.  |  Li Auto US | Li Auto HK

(Image credit: CnEVPost)

Li Auto's (NASDAQ: LI) Beijing plant, which is expected to be used first to produce its first all-electric model, doesn't appear to be far from the start of production.

Li Auto's plant in Beijing's Shunyi district is expected to be ready for production in August, and the company's first all-electric model, internally codenamed W01, will be built there, local media outlet Meiren Auto reported today.

The extended-range electric vehicle (EREV) maker is conducting mass hiring for the plant, though many candidates will need to start work in August after the plant's production lines are installed, according to the report.

The plant currently has more than 50 people on the shop floor, including more than 20 welders and 30 final assembly workers, the report said, citing a person already on board.

Li Auto, when asked about the plant, did not deny the report, saying the company is indeed actively preparing for the plant, according to the National Business Daily report.

The plant was originally Hyundai's first factory in China, but production had been halted since April 2019.

Li Auto began building its own facility based on the plant in October 2021, with a total area of 270,000 square meters for conversion and expansion and a total project investment of more than 6 billion yuan ($843 million), with production scheduled to begin in late 2023, according to a government announcement at the time.

Upon reaching production, the plant will achieve an annual capacity of 100,000 units of pure-play electric vehicles, the Shunyi district government said in the announcement at the time.

On March 15, an article posted on a WeChat account owned by local media outlet Beijing Daily said the Li Auto Beijing plant is expected to see its first vehicle roll off the line by September this year.

The Beijing plant is used to produce all-electric models with a design capacity of 100,000 units per year, Li Auto management said in a call with analysts following the company's first-quarter earnings announcement on May 10, adding that the company will optimize its production lines and production efforts in the future in response to more model launches and demand.

Li Auto's plant in Changzhou, Jiangsu province, has two production lines, one of which is used to produce the Li L9 and Li L8, with a capacity of 20,000 to 25,000 vehicles per month in double-shift production, its management said during the call.

The other line, which produces the Li L7 and Li L8, is currently a single-shift line with a capacity of 10,000 to 12,000 per month. Further capacity can be ramped up later, depending on the demand for deliveries, the company said.

Li Auto delivered 28,277 vehicles in May, up 145.97 percent year-on-year and up 10.11 percent from April, the third consecutive month to exceed the 20,000-unit mark.

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Li Auto delivers record 28,277 vehicles in May, surpassing RMB 10 billion in monthly revenue for 1st time

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Li Auto rumored to open larger stores in sales network expansion

is preparing to open so-called "central stores" in select Chinese cities, moving away from its current model of opening only experience stores in shopping malls, local media said.

(Image credit: Li Auto)

Li Auto (NASDAQ: LI) is said to be opening larger stores that resemble traditional dealership stores as part of an effort to expand its sales network.

The extended-range electric vehicle (EREV) maker is preparing to open so-called "central stores" in some Chinese cities, moving away from its existing model of opening only experience stores in shopping malls, local auto media outlet Yiche said in a report today.

These larger stores, similar to traditional car dealership stores, would offer a more comprehensive range of services, the report said, citing unnamed industry sources.

Li Auto is seeking proposals from supporters for sites to build such stores in 26 priority cities, including four first-tier cities -- Beijing, Shanghai, Guangzhou and Shenzhen -- and smaller cities including Nantong, Xinyang and Yangzhou, according to an image in the report.

Li Auto's requirements for venues are to be located in automotive markets, with luxury brands in around them preferred, and an area of 700-1500 square meters, according to the image.

For Li Auto, its original stores located in shopping malls seem to be inadequate as more models become available.

The company currently sells three models -- the five-seat Li L7, the six-seat Li L8 and the Li L9 -- all of them SUVs. It is expected to launch its first all-electric model, which will be an MPV, by the end of the year.

In terms of its retail store network, Li Auto was continuing to add new retail centers as it launches multiple models, the company's management said in a May 10 analyst call following its first-quarter earnings announcement.

Li Auto is also working quickly on store upgrades, replacing stores that used to be small with larger stores that support multiple models, the company said at the time.

Since the launch of Li L9 last June, Li Auto has optimized a total of nearly 50 existing stores and added more than 50 new stores through location changes and space expansions, the company previously said.

Li Auto opened 16 new retail stores and expanded two stores in May, according to information it announced on June 5.

As of May 31, 2023, Li Auto had 314 retail centers in China, covering 124 cities. It has 319 after-sales repair centers and authorized sheet metal spray centers, covering 222 cities.

Li Auto delivers record 28,277 vehicles in May, surpassing RMB 10 billion in monthly revenue for 1st time

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China NEV insurance registrations for week ending Jun 4: Tesla 14,500, Li Auto 6,600, NIO 1,700

launched the new ES6 on May 24, though the model is likely still in the process of climbing capacity and not contributing much to sales.

(NASDAQ: LI) kept sales strong last week, while its two local peers, NIO (NYSE: NIO) and (NYSE: XPEV), remained weak.

With 6,600 units sold in the week of May 29 to June 4, Li Auto continues to lead the pack among China's new car-making brands, the company said today on Weibo.

That's far more than other new car brands and more than the second and third places combined, Li Auto said.

Li Auto has delivered more than 20,000 units for three consecutive months, and this month the company will aim to reach its 30,000-unit monthly sales target, it added.

Li Auto didn't explain what the weekly sales are based on, but apparently, they are insurance registrations. The company had suspended sharing those numbers in May, but has now resumed sharing them.

All of Li Auto's models currently on sale are extended-range electric vehicles (EREVs), essentially plug-in hybrids that are targeting a broader market, including the five-seat Li L7 and the six-seat Li L9 and Li L8.

NIO and XPeng, on the other hand, offer only purely electric models and face a growing but much smaller market space.

NIO sold 1,700 units last week, according to figures shared by Li Auto. This is slightly higher than the previous week's 1,600 units.

Last week included the last three days of May and the first four days of June. The insurance data represents the number of vehicles registered in China.

NIO launched the new ES6 on May 24, although the model is likely still in the process of climbing capacity and thus still not contributing much to sales.

The electric vehicle (EV) maker delivered 6,155 vehicles in May, down 7.55 percent from April and down 12.37 percent year-on-year, according to data released on June 1.

NIO will finish climbing capacity for the new ES6 in June to deliver vehicles as early as possible, Jim Wei, the company's senior vice president of user operations, said in announcing May delivery figures on the NIO App on June 1.

In a research note sent to investors yesterday, Morgan Stanley analyst Tim Hsiao's team said that NIO's overall new order intake hit a year-to-date high thanks to the launch of the new ES6.

(NASDAQ: TSLA) sold 14,500 units last week, up from 12,800 the week before, according to figures shared by Li Auto.

Tesla sold 77,695 China-made vehicles in May, including those exported, data released yesterday by the China Passenger Car Association (CPCA) showed.

This was up 2.44 percent from 75,842 vehicles in April and up 141.55 percent from 32,165 vehicles in the same month last year.

XPeng (NYSE: XPEV) sold 2,100 units last week, unchanged from the previous week.

The company delivered 7,506 vehicles in May, down 25.87 percent year-on-year, but up 6.03 percent from April.

XPeng will begin pre-sales of the G6, the new SUV designed to compete with Tesla's Model Y, on June 9.

sold 2,100 units last week, up from 1,900 units the week before.

The company delivered 8,678 vehicles in May, up 100.42 percent from 4,330 in the same month last year and up 7.12 percent from 8,101 in April.

This is the fourth consecutive increase in monthly deliveries for Zeekr, which will begin deliveries of its third model, the Zeekr X, later this month.

Leapmotor sales were 3,400 units last week, down from 3,600 the week before. was 2,900 units last week, up from 2,100 the week before.

https://cnevdata.com/2023/06/06/china-nev-weekly-insurance-registrations-0606/

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Li Auto delivers record 28,277 vehicles in May

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's revenue exceeded RMB 10 billion ($1.4 billion) in May, the first time it has achieved that level of monthly revenue.

Li Auto provided guidance for second-quarter deliveries of 76,000 to 81,000 units when it reported first-quarter earnings on May 10.

The May deliveries announced today mean that it is expected to deliver between 22,042 and 27,042 units in June.

Li Auto's revenue exceeded RMB 10 billion ($1.4 billion) in May, the first time it has achieved that level of monthly revenue, said Li Xiang, founder, chairman, and CEO of Li Auto, adding that it lays a solid foundation for the company to surpass its revenue target of RMB 100 billion in 2023.

From January to May, Li Auto delivered 106,542 vehicles, up 124.87 percent from 47,379 vehicles in the same period last year.

By the end of May, Li Auto's cumulative deliveries since its inception were 363,876 units.

Li said on May 24 on Weibo that he set a goal for his team to reach 20,000 monthly sales of the company's five-seat SUV, Li L7, in October.

"Vendor partners, please trust us to keep up with capacity! " Li wrote.

On May 30, he said on Weibo that Li Auto's order and delivery volume exceeded 1,000 units per day for three consecutive weeks.

Li Auto's next major task is to boost supply chain availability, as the supply target set at the beginning of the year was a bit low, he said at the time.

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China NEV insurance registrations for week ending May 28: Li Auto 7,100, XPeng 2,100, NIO 1,600

's cumulative sales so far this month were around 5,300 units, with the company launching and starting deliveries of the new ES6 on May 24.

For the week of May 22 to May 28, (NASDAQ: LI) sold 7,100 vehicles, continuing to lead among China's new car brands, the company said today on Weibo.

Li Auto didn't explain what that sales volume was based on, but apparently, they were insurance registrations. The company had suspended sharing those numbers earlier this month, but has now resumed sharing them.

Last week's numbers mean that Li Auto sold 25,413 vehicles from May 1 to May 28. In the first three weeks of May, Li Auto's numbers were 4,543, 6,670 and 7,100 vehicles.

Li Auto is currently untroubled by the product switch, and its founder, chairman and CEO Li Xiang said on Weibo on May 24 that the company's five-seat SUV, Li L7, is expected to reach 20,000 monthly sales in October.

All of Li Auto's models currently on sale are extended-range electric vehicles (EREVs), with the other two models being the six-seat Li L9 and Li L8.

NIO (NYSE: NIO) sold 1,600 units last week, according to figures shared by Li Auto.

This means that NIO's cumulative sales for the month through last week were about 5,300 units. NIO's numbers for the first three weeks of May were 1,100, 1,200 and 1,400 units, respectively.

NIO officially launched the new ES6 on May 24, after the wait for the model by potential consumers seemed to have been holding down its sales.

Deliveries of the new ES6 began on the evening of May 24, although the vehicles were produced by NIO in advance rather than customized by consumers to their liking.

NIO began production of the new ES6 based on designer-recommended configuration combinations, and if consumers purchase these vehicles, official deliveries will begin on May 25, according to a May 24 post on the NIO App.

Consumers who wish to customize the vehicles can lock in their orders in the NIO App, and deliveries will begin in mid-June.

(NYSE: XPEV) vehicles sold 2,100 units last week, up from 1,500 units the week before. The numbers were 870 and 1,500 in the first two weeks of May, respectively.

Since May 1, XPeng vehicles have sold 5,970 units this month.

(NASDAQ: TSLA) sold 12,800 units in China last week, up from 10,200 the week before, according to figures shared by Li Auto.

That figure for Tesla was 5,928 and 9,990 in the first two weeks of May and 38,918 cumulatively so far this month.

was at 1,900 last week, down from 2,000 the week before and up from 1,500 in the second week of May. Its numbers for the first week of May are not available.

sold 2,100 units last week, up from 1,500 the week before. That figure was 1,000 and 1,700 units in the first two weeks of May, for a cumulative total of 6,300 units so far this month.

Leapmotor sold 3,600 units last week, up from 3,000 the week before. That figure was 2,200 and 2,500 units in the first two weeks of May, and 11,300 units so far this month.

China NEV insurance registrations for week ending May 21: Li Auto 7,100, XPeng 1,500, NIO 1,400

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Li Auto rapidly expanding smart driving and chip teams, report says

is hiring talent in China as well as abroad, and some of its core executives recently visited Silicon Valley, according to local media.  |  Li Auto US | Li Auto HK

(Image credit: CnEVPost)

Li Auto (NASDAQ: LI) is ramping up its R&D investment at a time when its major local peers are struggling with weak sales.

Li Auto's smart driving and chip teams are expanding rapidly, and the extended-range electric vehicle (EREV) maker is hiring talent in China and abroad, according to a report today in local media outlet 36kr.

Some of Li Auto's core executives, including senior vice president Fan Haoyu, smart driving vice president Lang Xianpeng, and product strategy chief Zhang Xiao, recently visited Silicon Valley and launched recruiting presentations at universities, the report said, citing industry sources.

As part of its efforts to ramp up recruitment of talent for its smart driving R&D team, Li Auto even asked employees to recommend resumes, according to the report.

In addition to its smart driving team, Li Auto's chip development team is also expanding, with a new chip lead, Luo Min, already on board to fill the position, which was vacant, the report said.

Li Auto's chip team had fewer than 100 people last year, and the company plans to expand it to about 200 this year, according to the report.

Li Auto invited some of Zeku's employees to talk about onboarding after cell phone maker OPPO shut down the chip design unit, the report said.

As China's new energy vehicle (NEV) industry enters 2023 with weak sales, (NYSE: NIO) and (NYSE: XPEV) were seeing sales decline due to product switches.

In contrast, Li Auto maintained strong sales, delivering 25,681 vehicles in April, another monthly high and the second consecutive month over the 20,000-delivery mark.

Li Auto's 5-seat SUV, the Li L7, delivered more than 10,000 units in April, its first full month of deliveries.

On April 18, Li Auto unveiled its all-electric solution on the first day of the Shanghai auto show, along with its latest generation of assisted driving system, AD Max 3.0, and said the software will be free for life.

AD Max 3.0's all-scenario Navigation on ADAS (NOA) will kick off internal testing this quarter and will cover more than 100 cities by the end of the year, Li Auto said at the time.

Li Auto CEO predicts China NEV penetration to exceed 80% by Dec 2025

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NIO’s local peers react to launch of new ES6

The launch of the new ES6 has triggered rare reactions from several of 's local counterparts, highlighting the fierce competition in China's EV market.

(Image credit: CnEVPost)

New model launches by local automakers rarely trigger reactions from their peers, and the new NIO ES6 is apparently one of those rare ones.

NIO officially launched the new ES6 in China last night, with its event starting at 7 pm and ending around 8:10 pm after announcing the price.

About a half hour after the event, Li Xiang, founder, chairman and CEO of (NASDAQ: LI), said on Weibo that he had set a small goal in advance for his team to reach 20,000 monthly sales of the company's five-seat SUV, the Li L7, in October.

"Supplier partners, please trust us to keep up with capacity! " Li wrote at 8:40 pm yesterday.

Although Li did not mention NIO, he seemed to be reacting to the launch of the ES6, as the two models are seen as competitors in China, even though the ES6 is purely electric and the Li L7 is an extended-range electric vehicle (EREV) that can be refueled.

In contrast to that Li Auto CEO's hint, an executive from HiPhi, another local car company, commented directly on the launch of the new ES6.

"Congratulations to NIO on the launch of the new ES6! Also sharing some information with those who follow HiPhi," HiPhi's brand and communications manager Xu Bin said on Weibo at 8:52 pm yesterday.

HiPhi is in the process of finalizing the pricing for the HiPhi Y series, with the 560 km range version expected to be set at a starting price of RMB 369,000 ($52,220), he said.

The HiPhi Y is HiPhi's third model and will be the brand's cheapest all-electric vehicle, with Xu revealing a price just RMB 1,000 higher than the starting price of the NIO ES6.

"HiPhi Y will open for delivery in July this year. If you are in a hurry to buy a car, you can go test drive the ES6, and if you are not in a hurry, you can wait for HiPhi Y," he wrote.

Compared to the comments of the two above, the words of a SAIC-GM-Wuling executive were more friendly, probably because the company is not in direct competition with NIO.

"Another new car went on sale this evening, the model costs more than RMB 300,000 and no one says it's expensive," Zhou Jinkai, deputy general manager of SAIC-GM-Wuling's brand department, wrote on Weibo at 11:38 pm last night.

"It seems we still have to build up the brand, the product, the technology, all around," he said.

SAIC-GM-Wuling will launch a new mini EV model, the Baojun Yep, later today.

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NIO officially launches new ES6, potentially lifting key factor holding back sales

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