Author: Zhang Yi

Looking back at the past with nostalgia in some future point in time, Guangqi Ai An in 2022 will undoubtedly be the most vigorous and thriving one among the many competitors.

In this year, Guangqi Ai An completed its shareholding system reform, officially separated from Guangqi Trumpchi, and was renamed “Guangqi Ai An New Energy Automobile Co., Ltd.” Taking big strides towards the era of “Industry + Capital” dual-wheel drive.

In the beginning of the year at Guangqi Group’s financial report release conference, Feng Xingya, general manager of Guangqi Group, boldly said, “We want to turn Wei Xiaoli into Ai Xiaowei.” In September, Guangqi Ai An’s sales volume exceeded 30,000 for the first time, reaching 30,016, and its cumulative sales volume from January to September had reached 182,300, achieving a 122% average annual compound growth rate overall, leaving other new forces far behind with absolute disparity. With the sudden emergence of Guangqi Ai An, the pattern of China’s new energy vehicle market is facing a reshaping.

However, more importantly, in this year, Ai An’s dream of a high-end supercar is no longer a mere illusion, but a tangible reality.

“China’s First Mass-Produced Supercar”

On September 15th, Guangqi Ai An held the “Ai An Brand Night and China’s First Supercar Launch” at the Guangzhou Tower.

At the conference, to promote the development of high-end cutting-edge technologies such as new battery and electric motor drive technologies, aerodynamic design, new materials, and AI control, Guangqi Ai An announced the establishment of the “Haobo Research laboratory” with China Aerospace, and launched its first high-end brand, Haobo, as well as the first supercar product under Haobo – Hyper SSR.

Users familiar with card games such as “Onmyoji” must know that SSR is the highest rarity level card in the game.In China, there are autonomous brands that have produced supercars, such as the Hongqi S9 priced at 15 million RMB, the NIO EP9 which broke records at the Nurburgring, the BYD E-SEED GT dubbed “Emperor Wu of Han” by netizens, and the struggling Future K50 which collapsed halfway through its venture. These supercars have either been regarded as the “mascots” of their brands or have caused their companies to fail due to massive investments without production.

However, the production line of Hyper SSR has already started construction. It is a 100% Chinese-made supercar designed, developed, and manufactured by GAC Aion. It is expected to be put into mass production and delivery in October next year. Judging from GAC Aion’s current sales numbers and its strong background backed by GAC, it seems that the company is not just making empty promises when it comes to manufacturing China’s first mass-produced hypercar at the level of the SSR.

Actually, Hyper SSR itself is a product that is worth anticipating.

Hyper SSR currently has two models, the 1.286 million RMB Hyper SSR and the 1.686 million RMB Hyper SSR Ultimate Race Edition. Both models are equipped with the innovative two-gear four-in-one high-performance electric motor developed by GAC Aion, which can provide a peak power of 1225 horsepower and a peak torque of 12000N・m. The Hyper SSR Ultimate Race Edition can even achieve a 0-100 km/hour acceleration in 1.9 seconds, giving users an experience of 1.7g acceleration, similar to the aforementioned 15 million RMB Hongqi S9.

In addition, becoming a Hyper SSR owner means obtaining the admission ticket to China’s top supercar clubs SCC and 19th Highway. Xiao Yong, Vice President of GAC Aion, commented:”Entering China’s most valuable top friend circle”.

Although similar to Tesla and NIO, which rely on supercars to establish brand identity and credibility, it is evident that at GAC Aion, Hyper SSR is not just an exciting and thrilling supercar, but also an investment opportunity. GAC Aion has made innovative moves on its path to pursuing high-end goals.

Of course, Haobo isn’t just a classic supercar brand. Its true target is the high-end market with a price tag of over 250,000 yuan, working with GAC Aion to cover all price ranges.

The mass production of Hyper SSR next year is just the first step in its strategy. Haobo is planning to launch a 300,000-yuan GT coupe, a large five-seat SUV, and an MPV, forming a positive confrontation with leading brands such as Tesla, Li Xiang, NIO, and Wanjie in this price range.

Who will dominate the vast world? The increase in GAC Aion’s influence in the entire new energy market cannot be ignored nor underestimated.

Set off again

A supercar with such extreme performance cannot be created simply by a leading figure’s decision to move further up the high-end market. In fact, Hyper SSR began research and development three years ago. Rome was not built in a day. GAC Aion’s dream of a high-end market has started early.

However, the beginning of the dream was somewhat off-track.

In 2019, AION S, Aion’s first model with a price tag of 150,000 yuan, was launched. To quickly boost sales and establish a firm position, AION S focused on the B2B market, resulting in high sales while being labeled as a ride-sharing car. In October of the same year, AION LX, priced at 300,000 yuan, was introduced. However, it is difficult to go uphill when water flows downward. Until today, AION LX’s sales have not been ideal.# Guangqi Aion New Energy officially renamed to Guangqi Aion New Energy Auto Co., Ltd in 2020, and has been operating as an independent high-end brand since then. Since the General Manager Gu Huinan identified Guangqi Aion as a high-end brand, he has been working to overcome the obstacle of the ride-hailing label that hinders Guangqi Aion’s advancement towards high-end market.

The 200,000-level AION V was released at the end of 2020, but the market performance has been lukewarm until now, with a total sales of only 15,825 units in 2021.

In April 2021, the 150,000-level AION Y was released, and in the same year, the 100,000-level AION Y 2022 was launched. Guangqi Aion finally broke out in the C-end market. Starting from the launch in April, AION Y achieved a sales volume of 32,109 units for the whole year. Compared with the sales volume of 60,000 units for the whole year of 2020, Guangqi Aion achieved a double-digit growth of 123,600 units in 2021.

In 2022, AION Y won the first place on the domestic sales chart, helping Guangqi Aion to overcome the dependence on the B-end market and get rid of the ride-hailing label through real C-end market sales growth.

Although the sales volume has increased and the ride-hailing label has been weakened, Guangqi Aion has gone in a big circle from the initial 150,000-level to the final 100,000-level, and the price has ultimately dropped lower than the starting point. Even if the ride-hailing hat is removed, Guangqi Aion still has not become a “high-end brand” as Gu Huinan wished, which has also been criticized by the public.

If Guangqi Aion’s previous pursuit of the dream deviated from the right path, then now Guangqi Aion has undoubtedly returned to the right track.As mentioned at the beginning, on September 6th, GAC Aion completed its conversion to a joint-stock company and became a GAC-controlled, employee-owned, capital-coordinated joint-stock company alongside GAC Trumpchi, and officially changed its name to “GAC Aion New Energy Automotive Co., Ltd.” This system has three characteristics; the platform of a state-owned enterprise, the efficiency of a private enterprise, and the process of a joint venture. Gu Huinan commented on this development.

Since it has already become independent from GAC Trumpchi, naturally the brand should be rebuilt.

Also on September 15th, at the “Aion Brand Night and China’s First Supercar Launch Conference,” GAC Aion announced its latest brand logo – the “AI God Arrow,” clearly setting itself apart from GAC Trumpchi.

The logo was taken from the English word “AI” in Aion, which, combined, creates an upward arrow shape, representing beautiful and easy-to-understand meanings such as “love,” “smart technology,” and “upward growth.” Gu Huinan gave a particularly Chinese interpretation: “To get promoted, drive an Aion car.”

After all the effort, GAC Aion is not only hoping to elevate customers, but also as Gu Huinan said, “Where there is a road, there is an Aion car,” and as Feng Xingya said, “To become one of the world’s top three high-end electric vehicle brands.”

Currently, against the backdrop of joint-stock conversion, the launch of supercars, brand renewal, and increasing sales, GAC Aion has also begun its Series A financing immediately. After Series A financing, GAC Aion has become a super unicorn company with a valuation exceeding 100 billion yuan.

The next step of the dream is to go public at the appropriate time.

Electric Impulse Speaks

Talking about being high-end is easy, doing high-end is difficult; creating a high-end brand is even more difficult.It is difficult for GAC Aion’s high-end dream to be achieved through creating a supercar or reaching a certain market value through IPO. It must rely on a series of market operations and years of brand accumulation to enable high-end clients to recognize the additional value of prestige and status beyond the product value.

Today, after five years of growth and two name changes, GAC Aion has made a huge leap from building ride-hailing cars to building sports cars, as well as the transformation from a follower to a leader, turning the high-end dream from imaginable to tangible. The road ahead is still long, despite twists and turns and rapid changes, the idea of “seizing the day” is crucial. Becoming impatient, anxious, and restless will only move GAC Aion further away from the high-end market.

What will GAC Aion’s high-end dream look like in 2023? Let us wait and see…

This article is a translation by ChatGPT of a Chinese report from 42HOW. If you have any questions about it, please email bd@42how.com.