Credit: Nio
- Harbin, Wuhan and Xiamen beat out 5 other bidding cities to enter the final vote.
- The event will return to its traditional year-end schedule.
Nio Inc (NYSE: NIO) has unveiled the 3 candidate cities for Nio Day 2026, with Harbin, Wuhan and Xiamen set to compete for the right to host the annual flagship event.
The 8 bidding cities completed their pitch presentations on July 4, the company said on Saturday. User groups from each city showcased their local communities, bidding highlights and resource advantages to the organizing committee.
Harbin, Wuhan and Xiamen were nominated after a comprehensive evaluation by the committee. The other 5 cities in the previously announced bidding pool were Changchun, Chongqing, Jinan, Nanjing and Qingdao.
Harbin, the capital of Heilongjiang province in northeastern China, is known for its ice and snow tourism and hosted the Asian Winter Games earlier this year.
Wuhan, the capital of Hubei province in central China, is a major industrial and commercial hub along the Yangtze River. Xiamen is a coastal city in Fujian province in southeastern China.
Under the bidding process, the 3 candidate cities will present themselves through the Nio App and other channels from July 14 to 17. The final result will be decided by a user vote.
Each user can cast their vote using Nio Points from July 17 to 18.
Nio Day is the company’s most important event of the year. Since its debut in Beijing in 2017, each edition has featured major product and technology launches. Nearly 10,000 users gather in the host city each year to witness the unveiling of new products.
This is the sixth year that Nio has used a city bidding process to determine the venue for Nio Day. The mechanism, in place since 2020, is designed to let the user community decide where the event is held.
Last year was an exception, however. Nio directly selected Hangzhou, Zhejiang province, as the host city in 2025 without a user vote.
Nio Day 2025 was held in Hangzhou on September 20 last year, marking the first time the event was moved from year-end to the fall. The shift was partly aimed at controlling costs, while also seeking to capitalize on the fourth-quarter sales peak.
This year, Nio has handed the choice back to its user community, signaling a return to its co-creation tradition. The event will also return to its usual December slot at the end of the year.
Last year’s event served as the official launch stage for the third-generation ES8 SUV (sport utility vehicle). The high-margin model, which starts at 406,800 yuan ($59,920), has become a key driver of the company’s improving financial performance.
Nio Inc delivered 40,597 vehicles in June, up 62.88% year-on-year, setting a new monthly record so far this year.
($1 = 6.7891 yuan)
