The man used AI software to create the fake image and spread it online to boost the popularity of his own self-media account, according to local media.
A man who created a rumor about BYD (HKG: 1211, OTCMKTS: BYDDY) buying Nio (NYSE: NIO) has been detained after the rumor gained widespread attention last week.
The man who created the rumor, a 29-year-old surnamed Xie, has now been detained, Anhui Daily's Dawan News said in a report last night, citing Hefei public security authorities.
The man used AI (artificial intelligence) software to create the fake image and spread it online to boost the popularity of his own self-media account and gain traffic, according to the report.
The man is not a resident of Anhui, the report noted, without mentioning his place of residence.
On November 22, a screenshot of a WeChat status showed a suspected BYD employee claiming that BYD and Nio would set up a joint venture, with BYD taking 51 percent of the shares and Nio 49 percent.
The text in the screenshot claims that the joint venture would acquire Nio for RMB 16.5 billion ($2.3 billion), and Nio will remain independent in the future.
Nio's assistant vice president for branding and communications, Ma Lin, later took to Weibo to deny the rumor, saying that the company had been doing quite well lately, with cash flow turning positive in the third quarter.
Ma shared a screenshot of a WeChat chat at the time, showing him asking BYD's head of branding and public relations Li Yunfei if the person suspected of posting the rumor was a BYD employee.
BYD's Li later also took to Weibo to say that the information in the rumor was false.
The day after the rumor was posted, Nio's legal department social media accounts said on November 23 that the company had reported the incident to the police.
After receiving the report from the concerned parties, the economic development zone branch of the Hefei public security bureau carried out an investigation. After checking with the companies involved and considering the investigation, the content of the screenshot proved to be false, according to the report by Dawan News yesterday.
According to Chinese law, those who spread fake rumors and intentionally disturb public order will be sentenced to more than five days and less than 10 days of detention, and can be fined up to 500 yuan, the report noted.
For minor cases, the penalty is detention for up to five days or a fine of up to RMB 500, according to the report.
($1 = RMB 7.2441)
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