Nio will open its chip operations to external customers after spinning off its smart driving chip division, according to Chinese media outlet Cailian, as the electric vehicle manufacturer seeks to broaden revenue opportunities and attract new investment.
The company has established a new project entity named Anhui Shengji Technology Co Ltd, which was officially registered on June 17. This move, previously reported by LatePost and now confirmed by a source cited by Cailian, marks the formal start of Nio’s strategy to operate its chip business as an independent entity while retaining overall control.
The spinoff follows Nio’s announcement in December 2023 of its first in-house chip, the Shenji NX9031, which has since been deployed in several models, including the flagship ET9 and newer versions of the ET5 and ES6. The company stated earlier that its chips and operating system will be made available to the wider auto industry.
“If you want to buy the best chips, you can go to Nio,” CEO William Li previously said, according to the Cailian report. The company aims to leverage its technology to support not just its own smart driving platform, but to potentially become a supplier to other automakers.
Bai Jian, a former Xiaomi executive who joined Nio in 2020, is leading the chip spinoff. He currently oversees both Nio’s chip and smart hardware units. The registered capital of the new entity stands at RMB 10 million ($1.39 million), with operations to include chip design and sales.
The move comes at a time of increasing investment interest in autonomous driving and chip development. However, Cailian noted that while Nio is seeking strategic investors, exit paths for chip projects remain uncertain in China’s competitive and maturing semiconductor landscape.
Nio’s domestic rival Xpeng has also developed its own autonomous driving chip, the Turing AI, which is being considered for future use in some Volkswagen models in China. Like Nio, Xpeng is positioning its chip as an open solution for the broader market.