Li Bin: Smart EV Sales Cycle Shrinks to Under a Year

On April 11, at the High-Level Forum on Intelligent and Electric Vehicle Development (2026), Li Bin, Chairman and CEO of NIO, stated that automakers are currently facing widespread profitability pressures, characterized by rising sales volumes without corresponding revenue growth, or increased revenues without improved profits. Intensifying industry competition has triggered fierce battles among companies for market share across product development, marketing, and services, squeezing profit margins. Accelerated technological iteration—particularly the rapid advancement of core components like chips and batteries—has forced automakers to continuously launch new models to avoid product obsolescence. Li noted that in the past, a successful internal combustion engine vehicle could remain on the market for five to seven years, allowing for a longer investment payback period and relatively lower operational pressure. Today, however, it is rare for a new vehicle to sustain strong sales for more than a year, significantly increasing the challenges automakers face. Against this backdrop, achieving profitability has become an urgent issue for the industry to address.