Turning the Tide in 100 Days: Li Bin’s Relentless Comeback Drive

“In a few years, NIO will still exist — but its leader may not be Li Bin.” A person close to the auto industry told Shixiang that investor patience with NIO is wearing thin, and many may soon push for a more conservative strategy.

For Li Bin, profitability is now a burden he must shoulder — and fast. In a recent internal meeting, he revealed his personal fourth-quarter VAU goals (Vision, Action, Upgrade, similar to OKR). The top priority: turning a profit before year’s end.

“This is the report card our entire team must deliver to prove our operational efficiency and business capability,” Li declared. “It’s not about showing others — it’s the cornerstone for NIO’s long-term sustainability.”

The challenge could not be tougher. In Q1 2024, NIO posted a net loss of 6.75 billion RMB, followed by another 4.99 billion RMB in Q2. Looking back, the company lost 21.15 billion RMB in 2023 and 22.66 billion RMB in 2024 — consecutive years of heavy losses.

Adding to the turbulence, a recent lawsuit by Singapore’s sovereign wealth fund GIC sent NIO’s Hong Kong stock tumbling nearly 9% on October 16. The case stems from a 2022 report by short-seller Grizzly Research, accusing NIO of inflating revenue through its affiliate, Wuhan Weineng Battery, by recognizing full battery sales upfront instead of over the five-year lease term. NIO has firmly denied the allegations, calling the report “worthless and error-filled.”

GIC’s new lawsuit merely reopens this “old case,” introducing no new evidence — yet it reignited market fear, wiping billions off NIO’s valuation. Behind it all lies one truth: after years of losses, investors have become skittish. As Li Bin said, NIO must now prove it can truly turn things around.

This year feels like Li Bin’s “second 2019.” An industry insider said, “This year is a major hurdle for NIO. Every EV maker has its critical year — XPeng faced it in 2023, Li Auto this year. For NIO, it’s 2019 all over again. Back then, Hefei’s state-owned investors saved them. This time, Li Bin must save himself.”

Li has been emphasizing profitability since mid-2024. In June’s earnings call, he said bluntly, “In 2019, we survived through external help. This time, we must generate our own blood.”

But the company is still bleeding cash. In the first half of 2024, NIO generated 31.04 billion RMB in revenue but spent 8.37 billion RMB on sales and administration (up 5.5%) and 6.19 billion RMB on R&D (down 6.6%). Together, those costs swallowed nearly 47% of total revenue. NIO explained that higher personnel expenses and store expansion drove the increase.

Part of this stems from its multi-brand expansion strategy. NIO’s new sub-brand, LeDao (Onvo), has expanded rapidly — surpassing 440 stores by early June. The surge in staff and outlets has squeezed short-term profit margins, even as sales climbed. Yet LeDao’s cars are priced far lower than NIO’s premium lineup. The Onvo L90 starts at around 200,000 RMB, while the third-generation NIO ES8 starts near 300,000 RMB. Average selling prices dropped from 260,000 RMB in 2023 to 228,400 RMB in Q2 2024. Consequently, NIO’s gross margin fell to 9.07%, while Li Auto’s stood at over 20%.

NIO is beloved by customers for its design and service — but investors worry that high service standards may be too costly. One famous anecdote tells of an investor who sold all his NIO shares after spotting 300-RMB imported hand soap in a NIO House showroom. President Qin Lihong responded that procurement prices differ greatly from retail, while Li Bin emphasized that attention to detail is part of NIO’s DNA — though the company will now focus more on cost-effectiveness without sacrificing quality.

For Li Bin, profit isn’t just about pleasing shareholders — it’s about restoring consumer confidence. “Around 30-40% of potential buyers hesitate to choose NIO because they worry we might collapse,” he admitted internally. “If we achieve profitability, that rumor dies instantly — and confidence returns.”

Battery swapping has long defined NIO’s identity — and fueled debate. Supporters compare it to JD Logistics in its early days: a high-cost move that builds user trust and long-term advantage. Through its BaaS (Battery-as-a-Service) model, NIO separates battery ownership from car purchase, lowering upfront cost and letting users lease batteries while the company absorbs depreciation risk.

Critics argue that maintaining a national swap network is a bottomless pit. Each station reportedly costs 3 million RMB to build — far more than a charging pile — and incurs ongoing maintenance, staffing, and electricity costs. Without massive usage volume, it’s hard to break even.

Li Bin remains undeterred. He calls battery-swapping “the essential infrastructure for the EV future.” By early October 2025, NIO had built 3,500 swap stations and 4,700 charging stations across China, from major cities to remote mountain passes.

In August, Li Bin even livestreamed a battery swap at Mount Everest Base Camp — the world’s highest swap station — showcasing how electric mobility can conquer extreme terrain. His message was clear: “Wherever a gas car can go, an EV should go too.”

Still, NIO is tightening costs. Since 2023, it has phased out lifetime free swaps, replacing them with flexible paid packages and stricter benefit management. “Some users sold their cars but kept using free swaps — that waste must stop,” Li said firmly.

To share the burden, NIO brought in CATL as a partner in 2024. CATL invested 2.5 billion RMB in NIO’s battery-service arm, WeNeng, and opened its “chocolate swap” technology to NIO’s Firefly sub-brand. The two firms now promote dual-network compatibility — users can swap or charge freely.

But the pressure remains. At the end of Q2, NIO’s current liabilities reached 62.2 billion RMB against 52.5 billion RMB in current assets, revealing mounting short-term debt stress. Battery-swap depreciation continues to weigh on margins, forcing Li Bin to race against time — driving sales to offset costs.

To achieve Q4 profitability, Li Bin is betting on delivery volume. The combined power of NIO, LeDao, and Firefly must push output to record levels. “Every car counts,” he told employees on October 17. “Every day matters. We can’t afford complacency.”

The momentum is visible. The Onvo L90 and NIO’s new ES8 have become breakout hits, fueling NIO’s best-ever quarterly deliveries. In September 2025, NIO delivered 34,749 vehicles — up 64.1% year-on-year — with 13,728 from the NIO brand, 15,246 from LeDao, and 5,775 from Firefly. Q3 deliveries hit 87,071, a 40.8% increase.

According to National Business Daily, demand has surged so much that NIO’s offices overflowed with new hires, forcing interviews into cafeterias. In some cities, consumers queued late into the night to reserve Onvo L90s.

At the same time, Li Bin is cutting costs aggressively. In March, NIO trimmed 10% of staff — mainly in after-sales, energy, and retail operations — and introduced a CBU (Cell Business Unit) model, requiring each unit to track ROI and take accountability for profit and loss.

Peripheral projects were paused. NIO’s ambitious NIO Phone initiative — once employing 500 engineers — was folded into the digital cockpit division, with major downsizing. Yet R&D remains largely intact. Though R&D expenses dipped slightly, NIO explained it was due to amortization changes, not layoffs. Li Bin continues to push deep self-development in autonomous driving, chips, and in-car systems.

The crown jewel is NIO’s 5 nm self-developed “Shenji” chip, which Li claims rivals NVIDIA’s Thor in performance. Its R&D cost alone, he said, could fund 1,000 battery-swap stations. However, experts remain cautious. “Even with four Orin-X chips in the ET5 since 2021, NIO’s driver-assist still lags behind peers,” said one insider. With NVIDIA’s new low-cost Orin Y chip hitting the market at under $400, NIO’s in-house Shenji chip faces a brutal price war — and limited volume to recoup costs.

Now, with less than three months left, Li Bin’s window to deliver on his promise is closing. His only real weapon is soaring sales — to prove that NIO can finally stand on its own. Time is running out, and like his company’s balance sheet, Li Bin’s path is tight. There’s no turning back.