Nio vs Li Auto: Two Chinese EV Giants at a Crossroads

"Nio delivered 87,071 vehicles in Q3, up 40.8% year over year, powered by three brands. The premium NIO badge moved 36,928 units, mass-market ONVO contributed 37,656, and the newly launched FIREFLY added 12,487. CEO William Bin Li called out the ONVO L90 as the top-selling large BEV SUV for three consecutive months."

"Li Auto delivered 93,211 units, down 39% year over year. A recall on the Li MEGA MPV dragged gross margin down by roughly 4.3 percentage points, turning what would have been a 20%-plus margin quarter into a 16.3% reported gross margin. Revenue fell 36.2% to $3.96 billion."

"Nio's strategy is horizontal expansion: three brands, three price tiers, one battery-swap infrastructure underneath all of it. The risk is execution complexity. Running three brands while burning nearly $489 million in a single quarter demands capital discipline. Nio's Q4 guidance calls for 120,000 to 125,000 deliveries, up 65% to 72% year over year."

"Li Auto is going vertical on technology. The VLA Driver autonomous driving model hit a 91% monthly usage rate in October, a strong adoption figure for any in-car AI system. Combined orders for the Li i8 and Li i6 BEV SUVs exceeded 100,000. Li Auto is betting that when this BEV transition completes, it emerges with better technology and stronger margins."

Nio and Li Auto reported contrasting Q3 2025 earnings results despite operating in the same market. Nio delivered 87,071 vehicles across three brands—NIO, ONVO, and FIREFLY—achieving 40.8% year-over-year growth with the ONVO L90 ranking as the top-selling large BEV SUV. Li Auto delivered 93,211 units, down 39% year-over-year, impacted by a recall on the Li MEGA MPV that reduced gross margin by 4.3 percentage points to 16.3%. Nio pursues horizontal expansion across multiple price tiers while maintaining battery-swap infrastructure, though quarterly cash burn reaches $489 million. Li Auto pursues vertical technology development, with its VLA Driver autonomous driving system achieving 91% monthly usage rates and combined orders for the Li i8 and Li i6 BEV SUVs exceeding 100,000 units.

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