Nio's Li bets on growth as China's auto market slows
Nio founder William Li warned that China’s domestic auto retail sales may fall 15%–20% in 2026, even as the company targets 40%–50% annual growth, aided by strong demand for its Onvo and Firefly lines amid a broader shift to NEVs. The market remains weak, with January–May auto retail down about 19.5% and early June declines over 22%, but Nio posted solid momentum with 150,526 deliveries in Jan–May and profitability in Q4 and Q1. Li stresses long-term transformation through heavy R&D (over 68.8 billion yuan) and continued investment in charging and battery-swap networks, arguing the move to pure electric vehicles is irreversible and should expand Nio’s share as its multi-brand strategy scales."