[Full text] 'The next two years are crucial for our success,' Nio's William Li says in internal letter

“We must keep launching competitive new products and improving our operational efficiency to double our sales next year and achieve profitability in 2026. These are goals we cannot afford to miss,” Li said.

Nio (NYSE: NIO) is celebrating its 10th anniversary today, and its founder, chairman, and CEO, William Li, used the occasion to release an internal letter to all employees emphasizing the next priorities.

“The next two years are crucial for our success,” Li said in the internal letter, which is seen by CnEVPost.

“We must keep launching competitive new products and improving our operational efficiency to double our sales next year and achieve profitability in 2026. These are goals we cannot afford to miss. Let's give it everything we have got!” he said.

To navigate a more challenging global economic landscape, heightened market competition and ever-stronger rivals, Nio must double down on our efforts and give its absolute best, Li said.

“Dear colleagues, we must be aware that we are at the most intense phase of the qualifying round. In two to three years, only a few outstanding companies will remain standing,” he said.

Below is the full text of the internal letter in English:

Dear Colleagues,

Today marks a significant milestone as NIO celebrates its 10th anniversary. At this special moment, I would like to extend my heartfelt gratitude to each and every one of you. Your unwavering dedication has turned our shared vision into reality, step by step. Thank you for being part of this journey.

NIO was fortunate to be founded at a time of unprecedented transformation in the automotive industry. With our mission, Blue Sky Coming, we have made steady strides toward a user enterprise that leads in both technology and experience.

In the past decade, we have developed 12 full-stack capabilities most fundamental to smart EVs, and filed over 9,300 patents. Our products have earned the trust and recognition of our users. In China, we hold over 40% market share in the BEV segment priced above RMB 300,000.

Across China and Europe, we have built 2,750 Power Swap Stations and over 24,200 chargers. Our ever-growing charging and swapping network has gained respect from users and industry peers alike.

Being a user enterprise, we have brought together a unique global community of over 620,000 users who have grown alongside us.

Thanks to the relentless efforts of all of our colleagues, we have laid a solid foundation for future growth.

Yet we must know we still have a long way to go before we achieve true excellence and meet the rising expectations of our users, partners, and investors.

To navigate a more challenging global economic landscape, heightened market competition and ever-stronger rivals, we must double down on our efforts and give our absolute best. Only in this way can we honor the trust and support of those who believe in us.

Dear colleagues, we must be aware that we are at the most intense phase of the qualifying round. In two to three years, only a few outstanding companies will remain standing.

Though we have weathered many storms in the past decade, we now face an even greater competition, which tolerates neither weaknesses nor shortcuts.

To reach the final round, we must uphold these two principles:

Always stay true to our original aspiration.

In a world where change is constant and short-term thinking often prevails, we remain committed to putting users' interests first and creating real user value in products, services and the community through genuine technological innovation.

We believe such approach is grounded in common sense and commercial logic, guiding us toward lasting success.

Shared values reduce internal friction, improve efficiency, and strengthen our competitive edge. Reflecting on our journey, we have learned that straying from our original aspiration might yield short-term success, but eventually, it was unsustainable, and the market would quickly penalize us. What helped us overcome those times was realigning with the aspiration and core values.

This year, we released the Value System 3.0. I hope it will be your compass, helping you in difficult decisions, reminding you to think and act from our shared values, to say what you believe, and do what you stand for.

Take solid actions.

Vision and Action together define the essence of NIO's logo. A great vision without execution is merely empty rhetoric, and long-term thinking should never be an excuse for poor execution at present.

Over the past decade, we have established a business framework around smart EV technologies, products, services, and a vibrant community. However, there is still significant room for improvement, particularly in strengthening the bottom-up system capability development and enhancing operational efficiency.

To address this, we must return to the fundamentals of our core business, focusing on optimizing each basic operational unit, whether it's an R&D project, car model, component, store, charging station, swap station, battery, frontline colleague, or marketing campaign.

When these essential building blocks operate more efficiently, the organization as a whole will follow suit. This requires setting clear business targets, cost targets, and ROI targets, all underpinned by actionable plans and regular reviews to drive continuous improvement.

Building system capabilities is the cornerstone of strengthening our execution. It requires consistent, small efforts each day before these efforts culminate in something magnificent.

The next two years are crucial for our success. We must keep launching competitive new products and improving our operational efficiency to double our sales next year and achieve profitability in 2026. These are goals we cannot afford to miss. Let's give it everything we have got!

Dear colleagues, our journey is a marathon on a muddy track, and it was never meant to be easy. We won't dwell on the past, or fear the future. The first ten years is just the beginning. As we look ahead to the next decade and beyond, let's continue to power up, and shape a sustainable and brighter future together!

William

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