NIO

NIO is a Chinese maker of smart electric vehicles, founded in November 2014 by William Li, who is chairman and chief executive. The name comes from the Chinese Weilai, which it translates as Blue Sky Coming. It says it is the first automotive company listed on the New York, Hong Kong and Singapore exchanges. It has research and manufacturing facilities in more than ten places, including Shanghai, Hefei, Beijing, Munich, Oxford and Abu Dhabi, and sales and service in 24 countries and regions.

What it does

NIO sells cars under three brands: NIO, ONVO, aimed at families, and firefly, a line of small cars. Its distinctive offer is a power service in which a battery can be swapped in about three minutes without leaving the car, alongside charging stations, home chargers and a Power Mobile service that comes to charge a car on the spot. NIO Power runs that network, and NIO Service handles maintenance, roadside rescue and extras such as Joyride butler driving. The company has developed NIO Full Stack, a set of twelve technology domains, and says it held more than 9,600 patents at the end of December 2025.

Who it serves

NIO sells to private owners in China and in markets across Europe, the Middle East, Central Asia, Southeast Asia and Central America. It runs a user community of nearly 600,000 people in more than 2,400 groups, and a users trust that holds 50 million NIO shares personally given by Mr Li. In October 2026 it agreed with Zhejiang Geely Holding Group to invest in each other's charging and swapping businesses.

Key facts

Founded: November 2014 People: William Li, founder, chairman and chief executive Brands: NIO, ONVO, firefly Network (September 2026): 9,433 stations, of which 4,126 are swap stations, per its release Listings: NYSE, HKEX and SGX Patents: more than 9,600 at end of December 2025