Nio announced that basketball legend Yao Ming has been named chief experience officer for the ES9 SUV. Credit: Nio
- Nio hopes to leverage the global influence of the NBA Hall of Famer to build momentum for its flagship SUV launching tonight.
- The ES9 will be the first to feature the new version of the Nio World Model and is ready for rapid delivery.
Nio Inc (NYSE: NIO) announced basketball superstar Yao Ming as the chief experience officer for its upcoming ES9, as the Chinese EV maker seeks to boost the appeal of its new technology-driven executive flagship SUV (sport utility vehicle) through this high-profile partnership.
Yao made history as the first international player to be selected first overall pick in the US NBA (National Basketball Association), an eight-time All-Star, and an inductee into both the Naismith Memorial and FIBA Halls of Fame, Nio highlighted in a statement on Wednesday.
Nio said Yao’s career not only defined “Chinese height” but also built a bridge for East-West communication with his global perspective.
Transitioning from a top athlete to a public welfare practitioner, Yao has long been deeply involved in children’s sports charities in impoverished areas. Nio believes this long-termism rooted in the future and sense of responsibility perfectly match the “dare to think and act” spirit that the ES9 pays tribute to.
A few days ago, videos and photos circulating on Chinese social media showed Nio founder, chairman, and CEO William Li and Yao together at a Nio showroom looking at the ES9, sparking rumors of a partnership.
This major announcement comes just hours before the ES9’s official launch. The launch event for the model is scheduled to be held at 7:30 pm Beijing Time on Wednesday, May 27.
Consumers can lock in their orders after the event concludes, at which point a limited-time exclusive car purchase discount benefit will also close.
The ES9 began pre-sales on April 9, with a starting pre-sales price of 528,000 yuan ($77,860) including the battery pack.
The current limited-time benefit allows pre-ordering users to pay a 5,000 yuan deposit to offset 10,000 yuan of the car purchase price.
Nio also announced today that the ES9 will be the first to feature the new version of the Nio World Model (NWM) smart driving assist system.
Traditional smart driving assist systems have models first output a sampled trajectory, which is then “translated” into vehicle operations for the steering wheel and acceleration/deceleration pedals.
The new version of NWM has for the first time in China eliminated the sampled trajectory, allowing the smart driving assist system to directly operate the steering wheel and pedals, greatly improving the smoothness and precision of vehicle control, Nio said.
The new software adopts the industry’s first three-layer training framework, combining a world model, supervised fine-tuning, and closed-loop reinforcement learning, according to the company.
In addition, it is the first automaker-developed smart driving assist system capable of recognizing overhead road signs, significantly improving lane selection accuracy without relying on high-definition maps, Nio said.
The ES9 is equipped with Nio’s latest generation of core research and development achievements. This includes the company’s in-house developed 5-nanometer Shenji NX9031 driving assist chip and the SkyRide active suspension system.
These technologies are integrated into a robust cage body structure to ensure safety.
Just on Tuesday evening, Nio showcased the ES9’s extreme safety tests on China’s state broadcaster CCTV. The model challenged the industry’s first continuous 100 km/h high-speed crash test.
The ES9 is equipped with 12 airbags, the most in its class, further emphasizing its hardcore technological prowess.
Against the backdrop of a challenging macroeconomic environment and sales pressure in the auto industry, Nio is attempting to replicate the success of the ES8 in the higher-end market.
Li expects that, driven by the ES9 and the Onvo L80 launched earlier this month, the company’s deliveries in May and June are expected to achieve steady growth.
Nio has made full preparations for the rapid delivery of this executive flagship SUV.
Recent photographic evidence indicates that Nio has already produced a batch of ES9s, and its showrooms across the country are ready to welcome the first batch of owners.
To break through industry headwinds, Nio plans to concentrate resources in the second quarter to ensure the smooth launch of the Nio ES9 and Onvo L80.
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