SaiDou Tech Launch Imminent as Seres Restructures Equity Ahead of New Brand Debut

On June 9, ahead of the official launch of Saidou Technology, shares of Seres Group fell by more than 2.8%, marking a cumulative decline of over 10% across four consecutive trading days. Previously, on June 2, when the name "Saidou Technology" was first disclosed, Seres shares had risen by 2.4%. However, the stock subsequently resumed its downward trend following ByteDance’s public denial on June 6 of involvement in vehicle manufacturing, compounded by a short-term correction in China’s A-share market. Saidou Technology, formerly known as Landian Technology, was established in 2023 and targets the mainstream family vehicle segment priced between RMB 100,000 and RMB 150,000. Its current product lineup includes the Landian E5, E3, and E5 PLUS models. In 2025, the Landian brand sold approximately 20,000 units—insufficient to achieve economies of scale—and has remained unprofitable over the long term. At the end of May, Landian Technology completed a capital increase and share expansion. Chongqing state-owned investment platform Sha Ci Zhi Yuan invested RMB 3.43 billion, becoming the largest shareholder with a 34.5% stake. Seres’ wholly owned subsidiary, Saihu Company, saw its ownership diluted to 32.96%, thereby losing control of the company. Meanwhile, employee stock ownership platform Yue Xing Jia Sheng, along with industry-chain investors including Wending Investment (a subsidiary of CATL), Bojun Technology, and Xingyu Shares, also joined as shareholders. Following the capital injection, Landian Technology secured over RMB 6 billion in funding, establishing an equity structure jointly held by state capital, OEMs, leading supply chain enterprises, and an employee stock ownership platform. In recent years, Seres has heavily relied on its partnership with Huawei through the Aito brand, which has performed strongly in the premium segment above RMB 300,000. However, Seres urgently needs to develop an independent second brand to mitigate risks associated with overdependence on a single collaboration—a strategy widely adopted across the industry. Saidou Technology has stated it will explore the concept of “AI-defined vehicles,” sparking market speculation about potential cooperation with ByteDance. In October 2023, Seres’ subsidiary Seres Phoenix Technologies signed an agreement with Volcano Engine, ByteDance’s cloud computing arm, covering multimodal cloud-edge collaboration, intelligent robotic decision-making and control, and human-machine augmentation technologies. Nevertheless, ByteDance has clearly stated it will not engage in vehicle manufacturing and will only provide technical services such as large AI models and intelligent cockpit solutions. Saidou Technology leverages Seres’ R&D, manufacturing, and distribution capabilities and benefits from local automotive industry support in Chongqing. Its new shareholder consortium provides financial backing, supply chain resources, and industrial synergies. However, the RMB 100,000-level new energy vehicle (NEV) market is highly competitive, with models like BYD Seagull, Wuling Bingo, and Geely Xingyuan already capturing significant market share, while advanced intelligent features are rapidly trickling down into this price segment. Ultimately, market performance will hinge on product competitiveness, brand recognition, and sustained investment capacity. Currently, Seres’ financial results and capital market valuation remain primarily driven by the Aito brand and the broader Huawei ecosystem.