• William Li reiterated to employees the goal of achieving annual profitability in 2026, following Nio's alert of its first quarterly profit in the fourth quarter of 2025.
• Reasonable profits are the foundation for the company's sustained development, and this target must be met, Li said.

William Li, founder, chairman, and CEO of Nio Inc (NYSE: NIO, HKG: 9866), reiterated to employees the goal of achieving annual profitability in 2026, following the company's alert of its first quarterly profit in the fourth quarter of 2025.

Li said during a company-wide meeting on February 9 that the company aims to achieve annual non-GAAP profitability this year, according to a Tuesday report by local media outlet LatePost.

“Annual profitability isn't something easily achieved — don't take it for granted,” Li told employees.

He emphasized that sustainable growth hinges on achieving reasonable profit margins, saying this goal must be met.

"We accomplished it last year, and we should do so again this year," Li said.

Li credited the Cell Business Unit (CBU) mechanism for its significant contribution last year, stressing its continued implementation moving forward.

"Using a car analogy, last year we essentially built the (CBU) concept car. We'll keep driving this forward, aiming to reach mass-production models sooner and achieve annual operational improvements," Li said.

During the meeting, Li recognized teams including the ES8 model team, Onvo L90 model team, Firefly model team, in-house chip development team, and supply chain cost-reduction team.

These models underpinned Nio's robust growth in the second half of 2025, with the third-generation ES8 delivering 60,000 units in just 134 days — its primary contributor to the company's fourth-quarter profitability last year.

Nio projects 1st ever quarterly profit, boosting confidence among shareholders and car owners

Nio has projected it will achieve its first quarterly profit under both non-GAAP and GAAP standards, injecting rare confidence into shareholders and car owners.

Nio

Feb 5, 2026

Below is the full text of Li's internal address, translated by CnEVPost.

Three hot-selling models bring us back to the table

Happy New Year, everyone. I've just distributed red envelopes containing 888 credit points to each of you. I want to express my deepest gratitude for your relentless dedication over the past year. Thank you.

2025 was an extraordinary year for Nio — one every colleague will remember. Every colleague has been striving, constantly thinking about what they can do for the company and how to help it survive.

I believe this experience has been profoundly meaningful for each of us. Last year, I said on many occasions: When we face crises, that's when we grow our capabilities.

I believe that when most of our colleagues look back on the past year's work, they can feel they have grown in capability.

Let's briefly review what we achieved over the past year.

First, the all-new Nio ES8 achieved 60,000 deliveries in just 134 days.

In December, the new ES8 not only claimed the top spot in large SUV sales across all price segments and powertrain types, but also secured the number one position in sales for vehicles priced above RMB 400,000, regardless of powertrain or body style.

This remarkable achievement made a significant contribution to the company's profitability in the fourth quarter.

At the same time, let's not forget that the 2025 sales champion for pure-electric three-row SUVs is the Onvo L90. Our company's momentum began to rebound with the successful debut and market launch of the L90, which achieved over 10,000 deliveries for three consecutive months.

Another surprise last year was the Firefly. In December, Firefly captured 61% of the premium compact car market share.

Firefly stands as one of the few models in recent years that has seen steadily increasing sales since its launch.

There's a phenomenon called the "new car death valley effect" in today's market — sales peak immediately upon launch, and once the initial buzz fades, sustaining momentum becomes challenging. Even the hottest models face this hurdle, yet Firefly defied expectations by selling more as it entered its stable phase.

This proves our product strategy, brand positioning, and marketing execution were spot-on, backed by seamless internal coordination.

Firefly serves as our pioneering brand for global market entry. In China, our lineup is "Nio, Onvo, Firefly," while globally it is "Firefly, Onvo, Nio."

What underpins these hot-selling models? It's the resolute, sustained investment in foundational technologies over the past decade that is now bearing fruit.

In 2025, our Shenji 9031 smart driving chip, SkyOS all-domain operating system, and SkyRide intelligent chassis were deployed in mass-produced vehicles.

The Nio ET9, which began deliveries last March, remains the world's most technologically advanced vehicle to this day.

Why does the ET9 maintain its lead? This is largely attributable to our in-house developed Shenji NX9031 — the world's first automotive-grade 5nm smart driving chip.

Those familiar with the chip industry will recognize that achieving mass production, vehicle integration, and full-domain verification for this chip represents an accomplishment we can be proud of.

Our chip team has overcome numerous challenges over the past few years.

Developing our in-house vehicle operating system to achieve full connectivity across the entire vehicle was no small feat.

Integrating so many intelligent hardware and software components while ensuring safety and reliability presented exceptionally high challenges.

This would have been impossible without our company's flat, 12-item full-stack in-house R&D mechanism and the highly efficient collaboration among our team.

Our ability to integrate these elements into a cohesive symphony within a relatively short timeframe demonstrates the exceptional skill of our R&D team and the outstanding collaboration across departments.

Additionally, the intelligent chassis, fully active suspension, and steer-by-wire technology are now being adopted by competitors.

We achieved mass production as early as March last year, maintaining over a year of leadership in this field while also contributing to the establishment of industry standards for steer-by-wire and related technologies.

Battery swap is a "friend of time, " its business model has been proven

From a delivery perspective, we've also achieved numerous milestones.

The company's annual sales last year grew 47% year-on-year, with the second half surging over 70% year-on-year. We've now entered our third growth cycle.

Recently, the company reached several significant milestones.

On January 6, our 1-millionth mass-produced vehicle rolled off the production line. What sets Nio's 1 millionth vehicle apart? Every single 1 of our 1 million vehicles is a pure electric model targeting the premium market.

More importantly, every vehicle is developed from the ground up as an original product built on Nio's 12 in-house developed full-stack technologies. This 1-millionth milestone represents high quality.

The second milestone occurred at 22:33:18 on February 6, when Nio completed its 100 millionth battery swap service. That day, I spent 5 hours thoroughly reviewing the entire journey of our battery swap business — from its inception to reaching 100 million services — highlighting the dedication of our internal team, the support of external partners, and the active participation of our users.

Reaching 100 million battery swaps not only validates the feasibility of our pure-electric battery swap technology but also proves our business model is viable.

Charging is more convenient than refueling — this isn't just a vision, but a reality we're steadily building. The further we advance down the battery swap path, the more confident we become.

We currently operate 3,729 battery swap stations, with plans to build 1,000 more this year. By year-end, we will have at least 4,600 stations.

We recognize the significance and value of battery swapping for users, and we clearly see its contribution to the company's commercial success.

This success extends beyond short-term gains to encompass long-term commercial viability.

Battery swap, as an energy service system, truly addresses systemic challenges in the smart EV industry — including the mismatch between battery and vehicle lifespans.

Everyone should trust that battery swapping is a friend of time. As time progresses, its importance and its user value, commercial value, and social value will become increasingly apparent. This is our second recent milestone.

The third milestone is February 5, when we released our the fourth-quarter 2025 profit alert.

This is based on capital market regulatory requirements. Although our formal financial report has not yet been released, according to regulatory requirements, this information must be disclosed to the market.

We achieved profitability in a single quarter. Whether measured under non-GAAP or GAAP standards, we delivered a profitable fourth quarter.

We must simultaneously maintain sales growth, ensure sustained investment in R&D projects, and uphold service satisfaction at a high level.

Achieving profitability under these conditions seemed impossible to many. We deeply appreciate all our colleagues for accomplishing our set goals. Thank you all once again.

Profitability is merely the starting point; we must continue to advance steadily

Since the latter half of last year, we have entered the third phase of the company's development.

Nio's first phase spanned from the company's founding through 2021. From delivering our first vehicle in 2018 to 2021, we maintained annual growth exceeding 100% even through challenging times like 2019.

The second phase spanned from 2022 to the first half of last year. Though sales fell short of expectations during this period, we still achieved over 30% annual growth.

In the automotive industry, declining sales bring significant challenges. As long as we maintain annual growth, we retain hope.

Our investments in R&D, infrastructure, and the resolute execution of organizational transformation during the second phase laid the groundwork for our third development stage, positioning us to enter a new period of harvest.

This year, we will prioritize the following tasks:

First, make resolute investments in technology and product R&D. Given limited resources, how can we ensure this doesn't compromise R&D competitiveness or product competitiveness?

Enhance R&D efficiency: Spend decisively where necessary, but not a penny where it's not needed. Clearly define ROI for each R&D project — each must demonstrate tangible value creation for users.

A lot of money is saved through this process. Since money is limited, where should we spend it? How can we allocate it where it yields the highest output? How can we invest it where it delivers the greatest user value? Figuring this out is how we build our capabilities.

Over the past year, I've gained a profound realization: Spending more isn't necessarily better. Often, not spending money is better than spending it, and doing less actually makes success easier.

Previously, we often failed to prioritize concepts we believed were potentially valuable. We neglected detailed calculations and failed to rigorously assess return on investment — this approach is clearly unsustainable.

Therefore, we must maximize output efficiency within given resources, maintain technological and product leadership, and achieve this through enhanced R&D efficiency.

Second, we will continue building our charging and battery swap infrastructure alongside our sales and service network.

This year, we will add another 1,000 battery swap stations and continue expanding our charging network. Our retail stores must reach less developed regions.

Of course, we must be mindful to calculate costs carefully — saving where necessary and investing where required.

Third, we will persistently advance our company-wide organizational transformation centered on user value creation.

Over the past two years, our entire company has significantly enhanced its capabilities by focusing on system capacity and full-staff business operation.

I now genuinely enjoy emphasizing operational management and meticulous cost accounting. When I approach management as an engaging endeavor rather than a burdensome task, my mindset shifts entirely.

What problem must we solve? It's about achieving the most impact with the least expenditure. Spending the most to accomplish the least is not a talent.

Next, we will continue advancing the CBU mechanism.

To use a car analogy, last year we essentially produced a concept car. We will persist in this effort, striving to reach mass production sooner and achieve annual improvements in operational performance.

Once these milestones are met, from the perspective of revenue and business objectives, we aim to maintain annual growth of 40% to 50% while ensuring customer satisfaction.

If we can sustain 40% annual growth, we will reach 5 million annual sales by 2035.

Our 5 million vehicles will undoubtedly hold greater value than those of other automakers —not only because our average unit price is higher than the industry average, but also due to our business model.

Our non-vehicle revenue reached RMB 2.59 billion in the third quarter last year, and our non-vehicle business has been profitable cumulatively from January to September.

Consider this: when we reach annual sales of 4-5 million units, our user base will grow to 20-30 million. What will our non-vehicle revenue be then?

In our business model, user relationships are our most valuable asset.

Stay focused and diligent in your work. Trust that time is on our side — this is the fundamental business philosophy behind my repeated emphasis on "making steady progress day by day."

Turning to the near term, our goal this year is to achieve annual non-GAAP profitability.

Annual profitability is no small feat; don’t take it for granted.

Sustainable growth requires reasonable profits — this is a fundamental objective we must achieve. We accomplished it last year, and we must do so again this year.

Continue building strong fortifications, fighting persistent battles, advancing step by step, and achieving long-term success.

Trust in the power of compounding over time. By improving incrementally each day, we will surpass our own expectations, exceed user needs, and achieve results beyond external projections.