Ask the world M9 finally debuted, and a variety of new products appeared at Huawei’s winter full-scene conference

On December 26th, the Q & J M9 and Huawei Winter All-Scene Conference was held. Q & J M9, nova 12 series mobile phones, Huawei FreeClip earphones, Huawei MatePad Pro Collector’s Edition, Huawei Smart Screen V5, Huawei Routing BE3 Pro 2500M Network Port Edition and other all-scene products were unveiled. The new products of this conference cover consumer smart travel, smart home, smart office and other diverse application scenarios, further improving Huawei’s all-scenario ecology of Internet of Everything.

Hongmeng Zhixing’s annual blockbuster product, Wenjie M9 was officially released, with a total of 4 models launched, priced 46.98-56 9,800 yuan. Wenjie M9 fully boarded Huawei’s top ten smart car technologies, bringing leading experiences such as smart cockpit, smart driving control, smart driving, and smart safety. Redefine smart car standards and create a new smart travel experience for users.

The Q & A M9 has a variety of space, three rows of larger space performance, the occupant space reaches 2725mm, and supports 3, 4, 5, and 6 seats of variable seat mode. Q & A M9’s smart cockpit, the whole car is equipped with 10 screens to realize multi-person, multi-screen and multi-device interaction. The car-level projection system is on the bus, and the 32-inch lifting projection screen replicates the cinema-level viewing experience. The new HUAWEI SOUND excellent series has a flagship configuration, equipped with 25 units of professional-grade audio, and the power amplifier output reaches 2080W. The new Xiaoyi smart assistant is equipped with an AI large model for the first time, creating more full scene possibilities for users.

The M9 is equipped with Turing intelligent chassis, adopts front double fork arms and rear multi-link independent suspension, and the whole system is equipped with intelligent closed air spring and CDC variable damping shock absorber as standard. Through multi-modal fusion sensing system, HUAWEI DATS dynamic adaptive torque system and HUAWEI xMotion intelligent body collaborative control system. HUAWEI ARHUD in-person head-up display system, HUAWEI XPIXEL megapixel intelligent projection headlights and other technologies, so that intelligent driving control can enter the light age.

The M9 fully upgrades the HUAWEI ADS 2.0 high-level intelligent driving system, is equipped with 192-line lidar, and can accurately identify vehicles, pedestrians, traffic facilities and signs, piles, etc. through GOD (General Obstacle Detection) Network 2.0 and RCR (Road Topology Inference Network) Network 2.0.

The nova 12 series combines portrait power with avant-garde technology aesthetics. In terms of appearance, the vitality and confidence of young people are integrated into the design, resulting in a new color 12. In terms of screens, the nova 12 Ultra and nova 12 Pro bring equal-depth four micro-curved screens, which combine round feel and precise control.

In terms of imaging, the nova 12 Ultra and nova 12 Pro are equipped with a front-mounted binocular stereoscopic vision imaging system, which brings 0.7X-5X full-focal zoom capability, and is equipped with the XD Portrait Da Vinci portrait engine, focusing on the four portrait characteristics of "shape, quality, light and color". Various selfie scenes can not only be photographed clearly, but also beautifully. In terms of comprehensive experience, the nova 12 series has an antenna architecture with a wide coverage, which can enjoy high-quality signals outside the suburbs, urban shopping malls, or subway high-speed trains. The dual-card dual-pass function allows the nova12 series to achieve dual data parallelism, and the fast Internet connection does not wait. Nova 12 Ultra and nova 12 Pro support two-way Beidou satellite messages, and support sending and receiving Beidou satellite messages without ground network signals. At the same time, nova 12 series is equipped with HarmonyOS 4, bringing a smarter and more convenient interactive experience. Nova 12 series is equipped with 100W smart fast charging Turbo, nova 12 Ultra and nova 12 Pro can be charged to 60% in 10 minutes.

Huawei FreeClip earphones are designed with "C-bridge" design and built-in nickel-titanium memory alloy, which is reliable and durable. A single earphone weighs only 5.6g, achieving a comfortable and unburdened wearing experience. With a 10.8mm dual magnetic high-sensitivity unit, it brings a pleasant listening experience without entering the ear. The single earphone is full of 8 hours of continuous music playback, and it is matched with a charging case for 36 hours of music playback life of the whole machine. It also supports smart experiences such as multi-device connection and audio sharing.

Huawei MatePad Pro 13.2 inches, Collector’s Edition, Huawei MatePad Pro Kit (Star Flash Edition) and Huawei Smart Magnetic Keyboard (Star Flash Edition) were unveiled at the press conference at the same time. Huawei MatePad Pro Kit (Star Flash Edition) contains a keyboard with Star Flash technology and HUAWEI M-Pencil (third generation), which also uses Star Flash technology, completes the closed loop of the Star Flash ecosystem in professional creation and mobile office scenarios, making office creation more stable and efficient, once again broadening the boundaries of tablet experience. Huawei MatePad Pro 13.2-inch Collector’s Edition also contains Huawei FreeBuds Pro 3 headphones, quiet calls, and HUAWEI Care + service for two years, giving the device more peace of mind.

Huawei released a new smart screen V5. In terms of smart function, it continues to be equipped with Huawei’s Lingxi pointing remote control, bringing a new interactive experience of "playing TV like a mobile phone"; with the super desktop function, it brings a large number of mobile phone applications to the large screen and unlocks hundreds of new ways to play "giant screen mobile phone". In terms of image quality, SuperMiniLED Honghu image quality supports "1080P seconds to 4K", showing more delicate and clear picture details. In terms of entertainment experience, it is equipped with HarmonyOS 4, through multi-device collaboration and diverse living room entertainment gameplay.

Aiming at new productivity and building a super R & D center

  Correspondent, Jianxuan, Zhu Dianping

  Jinling Evening News/Zijinshan News reporter 

  Yin Xuebing Ling Yun

  On the morning of May 19, Xiaomi Nanjing Science and Technology Park was officially opened at Xiaomi Group’s East China headquarters in Jianye District. It will become one of Xiaomi’s most important software research and development centers outside the Beijing headquarters. This move not only marks a new level for Xiaomi Group’s innovation platform in East China, but also adds strong momentum to the development of Nanjing’s digital economy industry.

  Taste "millet porridge" again and start a new journey together

  At 9:58 in the morning, with the sound of gongs and drums, Xiaomi Nanjing Science and Technology Park officially opened. In the square in front of the gate, nearly 200 Xiaomi employees dressed uniformly, waved support sticks in their hands, and laughed one after another, welcoming the "new home" moment that belongs to the Nanjing Xiaomi team.

  Walking into Xiaomi Nanjing Science and Technology Park, the garden-like layout of the park is hidden by green trees, and the geometric aesthetic "back" shaped glass building is brand new and bright. According to the official plan, the Xiaomi Group East China Headquarters project is divided into three phases, with a total construction area of 365,000 square meters, including scientific research and design offices, talent apartments and related supporting facilities. The first phase of the project was completed and opened about 164,000 square meters, and more than 2,600 employees in the early stage were all in place on May 6.

  Xiaomi Nanjing Science and Technology Park is affiliated to the Xiaomi Group East China Headquarters project and is positioned as "Xiaomi Group Software R & D Center and Talent Base". It is one of the most important software R & D centers of Xiaomi. It has been selected for major planned development projects in Jiangsu Province and key projects of Nanjing Famous Enterprise Settling Plan. Xiaomi Group East China Headquarters is mainly responsible for the development of operating systems and software. Together with Xiaomi Wuhan Headquarters, it jointly supports the overall technology research and development work of Xiaomi Beijing Headquarters.

  At the event site, the "Xiaomo" service specialist of Jianye High-tech Zone presented the company with an exclusive "golden key" printed with the Xiaomi logo, which will serve the development of enterprises and project construction with great efforts, and support the development of Xiaomi Group’s East China headquarters with more practical measures. Together, we will write a new future of high-quality development.

  In April 2010, under the leadership of Lei Jun, the start-up team drank a bowl of millet porridge, which started Xiaomi’s legendary development; in just 9 years, it became the youngest world’s top 500. At the opening ceremony of Xiaomi Nanjing Science and Technology Park that day, Lei Jun, founder, chairperson and CEO of Xiaomi Group, once again invited the guests to drink "millet porridge" to jointly start Xiaomi Group’s new journey in East China.

  "I was very excited when I visited the Nanjing park. I would like to thank the relevant departments of Nanjing and Jianye District, as well as the headquarters and Xiaomi students in Nanjing. We have worked together to have this beautiful home. With the support of the municipal party committee and municipal government and the district party committee and district government, Nanjing will become a blessed land for Xiaomi to take off." Lei Jun said in his speech.

  70 days on the ground, "Nanjing Efficiency" moved "Xiaomi People"

  Why did Xiaomi Group’s East China headquarters choose Nanjing to settle in Jianye? It dates back to August 2017, when the Xiaomi team was first invited to Jianye, Nanjing, to further understand the Nanjing market and explore the possibility of cooperation with Jianye District. "During the visit, Xiaomi saw the basic resources such as Nanjing’s good infrastructure and development environment, as well as the long-term investment value and development prospects of Jianye and the support of the government. It also realized the responsibility of Jianye as the core area of Nanjing, which provided good conditions for Xiaomi’s development in Nanjing." Liang Qiushi, general manager of Xiaomi Group Nanjing, recalled in his opening speech.

  Then in October 2017, Xiaomi Group’s East China headquarters project was officially signed and landed in Jianye. What’s more worth mentioning is that it only took 70 days for the two parties to "hold hands" from the first negotiation to the official signing. "The agreement was reached in 70 days, which fully demonstrates the good business environment and high efficiency of Nanjing and Jianye, which makes our company more confident in long-term rooted development!" At the signing ceremony at that time, Lei Jun expressed his high appreciation for the service consciousness and innovative spirit of Nanjing and Jianye.

  "Xiaomi, which is young, creative and full of science and technology, and Jianye, which is modern, open and innovative, are very compatible in terms of urban temperament and development concept. Xiaomi’s choice of Nanjing and Jianye is an important strategic move for both parties to superimpose their advantages and win-win cooperation," said the relevant person in charge of Jianye District.

  From coordinating the transition carrier of Xiaomi Group in Xincheng Science and Technology Park to fully supporting the completion and implementation of Xiaomi Nanjing Science and Technology Park, Jianye High-tech Zone "accompanies" the development of Xiaomi Group’s East China headquarters throughout the process, keeping an eye on the demands of enterprises, and providing support according to the model of "one main body + one base + a series of policies" to ensure the maximum integration of resources and achieve accurate drip irrigation for industrial development. Since 2017, Xiaomi has established 6 companies in Nanjing, including Beijing Xiaomi Mobile Software Co., Ltd. Nanjing Branch and Nanjing Xiaomi Communication Technology, and gathered a number of ecological chain enterprises.

  Demonstration leads, turning Nanjing into a super R & D center

  "I am very happy today. The Xiaomi Nanjing Science and Technology Park has opened, and the Xiaomi Engineer Training Camp has officially opened. We will cooperate with universities for this project, so that outstanding Xiaomi engineers can hold technical training in universities, communicate directly with outstanding students, and let students master more practical skills." Lei Jun testified with a picture on Weibo.

  It is understood that the East China headquarters of Xiaomi Group, as the software research and development center and talent base of Xiaomi Group, will focus on mobile phone and automotive software development, internet services and other advantageous businesses in the future. In terms of talent training, Xiaomi is working with universities in Jiangsu Province such as China Southern Airlines and Nanjing University of Technology to jointly train students, and cooperate with industry, university and research. Continue to play a leading and exemplary role in helping Nanjing become an innovative economic highland and a smart city.

  Lei Jun said that the long-term goal of Xiaomi’s future development is to invest in the underlying technology on a large scale and become a global leader in the new generation of hard core technology. In all Xiaomi products and technology ecosystems, the improvement of software capabilities is particularly important, which is also the mission of Xiaomi Group’s East China headquarters. It is hoped that the development of Xiaomi will be deeply integrated with Nanjing’s industry, closely combined with Nanjing’s industrial advantages, and the Nanjing area will be turned into a super R & D center to effectively support the implementation of the group’s strategic goals and help Nanjing’s new quality productivity development.

  The opening of Xiaomi Group’s East China headquarters will undoubtedly bring new changes to the development of the urban economy and industry. On the one hand, the settlement of talents can increase employment and stimulate consumption; on the other hand, the advantage of corporate headquarters has a strong role in driving the radiation of the industry, and the headquarters economy can promote the stability of the industrial chain and supply chain in the region.

  The reporter learned that in addition to Xiaomi’s East China headquarters, projects such as Alibaba’s Jiangsu headquarters and Hang Seng Electronics’ Jiangsu headquarters, which are gathered in the southwest of the river, are also being accelerated.

  In recent years, Jianye District has focused on the leading industries of "finance + digital economy", gathered more than 95% of the municipal headquarters enterprises in the area, attracted more than 80,000 high-end talents to settle in, and built a number of 10 billion-level emerging industrial clusters such as information software, smart logistics, and digital entertainment.

A drop of more than 90%! Evergrande’s sudden announcement

On August 28, China Evergrande announced on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange that Evergrande’s agreement arrangement meeting will be postponed for 29 days to September 26. Before that, China Evergrande said that the agreement arrangement meeting scheduled for August 23 will be postponed to August 28.

On the same day, China Evergrande resumed trading on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange, and the intraday share price fell by more than 90%. As of the close, China Evergrande’s share price was HK $0.34, falling below HK $1 and becoming a penny stock.

Image Source: Oriental Fortune

Agreement to postpone the meeting

According to China Evergrande’s announcement, the company has decided to extend the period for Evergrande Agreement Arrangement creditors to consider, understand and evaluate the terms of Evergrande Agreement Arrangement, and to give Evergrande Agreement Arrangement creditors more time to consider the recent development of the Group. Therefore, the Evergrande Agreement Arrangement Meeting will be postponed for 29 days to September 26. In order to keep the schedules of Evergrande Agreement Arrangement, Jingcheng Agreement Arrangement and Space-based Agreement Arrangement as consistent as possible, the Jingcheng Agreement Arrangement Meeting and the Space-based Agreement Arrangement Meeting will be postponed for 28 days to September 25.

The Hong Kong Evergrande Class A Agreement Arrangement Meeting will be postponed to September 26, 2023 at 8:00 pm (Hong Kong time) (i.e. 7:00 am Cayman Islands time). The Hong Kong Evergrande Class C Agreement Arrangement Meeting will be postponed to September 26, 2023 at 9:30 pm (Hong Kong time) (i.e. 8:30 am Cayman Islands time) (if later than the aforementioned time, after the conclusion of the Cayman Islands Evergrande Class A Agreement Arrangement Meeting).

The Cayman Islands Evergrande Class A Agreement Arrangement Meeting will be postponed until 8:45 pm (Hong Kong time) on September 26, 2023 (i.e. 7:45 am Cayman Islands time) (if later than the aforementioned time, after the conclusion of the Hong Kong Evergrande Class A Agreement Arrangement Meeting). The Cayman Islands Evergrande Class C Agreement Arrangement Meeting will be postponed until 10:15 pm (Hong Kong time) on September 26, 2023 (i.e. 9:15 am Cayman Islands time) (if later than the aforementioned time, after the conclusion of the Hong Kong Evergrande Class C Agreement Arrangement Meeting).

The meeting will be postponed until 9:00 am (British Virgin Islands time) on September 25, 2023 (i.e. 9:00 pm Hong Kong time).

The Space-based Agreement Arrangement Meeting will be postponed to 8:00 pm (Hong Kong time) on September 25, 2023.

Evergrande Group believes that, despite the postponement of the Agreement Arrangement Meeting, the timetable for the proposed restructuring is still in line with the Agreement Arrangement creditors’ expectations for the implementation of the proposed restructuring, given that the current deadline is December 15, 2023.

Shares resume trading on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange

On August 28, China Hengda resumed trading on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange, the intraday share price fell by more than 90%, and the market value evaporated by nearly 20 billion Hong Kong dollars.

Wind data show that China Hengda shares closed at HK $1.65/share before the resumption of trading, with a market value of HK $21.80 billion.

On the evening of August 25, China Evergrande announced that it will resume trading on August 28. So far, all three listed companies in the Hengda department have completed the resumption of trading.

On August 27, China Evergrande released its 2023 semi-annual report. Revenue in the first half of 2023 was 128.20 billion yuan, an increase of 44% year-on-year, and the total net loss was 39.25 billion yuan.

Data show that Evergrande’s total liabilities decreased slightly to 2.3882 trillion yuan from the end of last year, excluding the advance payment of the debt is 1.7842 trillion yuan. Among them, interest-bearing loans 624.80 billion yuan, engineering materials and other payables 1.0566 trillion yuan, other liabilities 102.90 billion yuan. As of June 30, China Evergrande’s land reserves reached 190 million square meters, and there were 78 old renovation projects (34 in Shenzhen).

It is worth noting that according to the 2022 annual report released by China Evergrande recently, China Evergrande’s revenue in 2022 was 2300.7 billion yuan, the total net loss was 125.81 billion yuan, and the cumulative sales refund for the year was 35.79 billion yuan. The total liabilities in the 2022 statement were 2.43741 trillion yuan. In terms of land reserve, as of the end of 2022, China Evergrande had a land reserve of 210 million square meters.

According to China Evergrande, since its operating difficulties began in September 2021, Evergrande has promoted the full resumption of work on nearly 700 projects and the maintenance of buildings.

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Original title: "More than 90% down! Evergrande sudden announcement"

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5 years of car loss exceeds 110 billion! Hengda Automobile sudden announcement: strategic investment termination

guideThe car has lost more than 110 billion in 5 years.

Source |Hengda Automobile Announcement, Financial World, Securities Times, Daily Economic News

According to Hengda Automobile’s announcement, Newton Group’s strategic investment has been terminated, and the company’s previously proposed transactions and amendments to the terms of the debt-to-equity swap have not made any further progress.

Evergrande Motor said that it will not hold a shareholders’ meeting for approval and will not publish any circulars relating to, among other things, the Special Mandate, the Newtown Group share purchase agreement, the proposed transaction, the wash waiver, the proposed amendment, the debt-for-equity subscription agreement, the offset agreement and the debt-for-equity swap. The company will no longer issue further monthly announcements on the proposed transaction and the progress of the debt-for-equity swap.

As the Share Subscription is no longer in progress, the Subscriber is under no obligation under Rule 26 of the Takeovers Code to make an unconditional mandatory general offer in respect of all outstanding Shares which it and persons acting in concert with it have not yet owned or consented to acquire. The Company will not apply to the Executive for his consent to the Special Deal.

In August 2023, Hengda Auto and strategic investor Newton Group signed an agreement. The main content of Newton Group’s share purchase agreement is that Newton Group implements a strategic investment of about 500 million US dollars in Hengda Auto and provides 600 million yuan in transition funds; the debt-to-equity swap agreement means that Hengda Group, Xu Jiayin and other creditors offset the 20.895 billion Hong Kong dollar debt owed by Hengda Auto by subscribing for new shares of Hengda Auto. Assuming that the debt-to-equity swap of new energy vehicles is completed and followed by the completion of the subscription of new energy vehicle shares, China Evergrande’s shareholding ratio in Evergrande Automobile will be diluted to about 46.86%, Evergrande New Energy Automobile will no longer be a non-wholly-owned subsidiary of China Evergrande, and its financial performance will no longer be comprehensively accounted for in China Evergrande’s performance.

In October 2023, the transaction was suspended, and Evergrande announced that Newton Group had suspended the implementation of relevant obligations in the share purchase agreement. The change in the transaction was directly related to the exposure of "Xu Jiayin was subject to coercive measures" at that time, which interrupted the process of Hengda’s dollar debt restructuring, which in turn caused Hengda to fail to meet the pre-conditions of the transaction.

In January 2024, Evergrande announced that the Newtown Group’s share purchase agreement and the company’s debt-for-equity swap subscription agreement for Evergrande had expired on December 31, 2023. At that time, Evergrande responded that the parties to the Newtown Group’s share purchase agreement and debt-for-equity swap subscription agreement, as well as certain stakeholders, have been and will continue to negotiate amendments to certain key terms of the proposed transaction and debt-for-equity swap. The company will make monthly announcements until it announces its exact intention to proceed with the proposed transaction and debt-for-equity swap or decides not to proceed with the proposed transaction and debt-for-equity swap.

Evergrande’s "life-saving money"

Newton Group’s strategic investment in Hengda Automobile is regarded by public opinion as "life-saving money" for Hengda Automobile.

On August 14, 2023, Hengda Automobile announced that it received the first strategic investment of 500 million US dollars from the listed company Newton Group (NWTN.US), which is held by the sovereign fund of the United Arab Emirates, and another 600 million yuan of RMB transition funds will be received one after another 5 working days after the announcement.

The proposed transaction between the two parties is expected to close in the fourth quarter of 2023. Upon completion of the transaction, Newton Group’s shareholding ratio in Evergrande will account for 27.5% of the total number of issued ordinary shares after the expansion.

However, the deal is subject to 19 preconditions, including the entry into force of the China Evergrande workout and the absence of material adverse events.

The car has lost more than 110 billion in 5 years

According to Hengda Automobile previously disclosed that all the funds invested in this war will be used for Hengda Automobile’s Tianjin factory to ensure the normal production of Hengchi 5 and the successive mass production of Hengchi 6 and 7. In addition, Newton Group will also assist Hengda Automobile to develop overseas markets and achieve the annual export of 30,000-50,000 Hengchi vehicles to the Middle East.

In 2023, Hengda’s total revenue is 1.34 billion yuan, of which more than 1.10 billion yuan comes from property sales, accounting for more than 90% of the overall revenue.

Hengda Automobile lost 11.995 billion yuan last year (27.664 billion yuan in 2022). Statistics show that Hengda Automobile has been building cars for 5 years, with a cumulative loss of 110.841 billion yuan and a cumulative delivery of 1389 units.

As of the end of last year, Hengda’s total assets 34.851 billion yuan; total liabilities 72.543 billion yuan, of which, loans 26.484 billion yuan, trade and other payables 43.012 billion yuan, other liabilities 3.047 billion yuan.

As of the end of last year, Hengda Automobile was involved in the outstanding debts of about 9.447 billion yuan; on December 31, 2023, the group’s overdue commercial tickets accumulated about 3.401 billion yuan. In addition, the number of pending proceedings with a target amount of more than 30 million yuan totaled 68 pieces, and the total amount of the target amount totaled about 13.608 billion yuan.

225 stores across the country opened simultaneously, and Geely’s "Galaxy Speed" goes beyond cars

With the official launch of Geely Galaxy L7, Geely Galaxy’s exclusive retail system has also been updated.

On June 5, the "Opening Ceremony of Geely Galaxy 100 Stores" was held in Xi’an. On this day, 225 exclusive Geely Galaxy stores opened simultaneously in multiple cities, reaching users across the country at "Galaxy Speed".

It is expected that within this year, Geely Galaxy will achieve a channel scale of 650-700 exclusive stores.

According to reports, Geely Galaxy has adopted a new channel ecosystem of compound franchise authorization for its new retail system.

In terms of agency distribution system, Geely Galaxy fully empowers dealers in talent management, service standards, and digital operations, and jointly builds user centers (4S stores), experience centers (city exhibition halls), and display spaces (supermarket stores) with partners to create a more transparent car purchase environment and a more efficient and convenient car purchase experience for users. At the same time, Geely Galaxy will set up a number of brand centers (4S stores) in the CBD areas of first- and second-tier cities such as Hangzhou, Shanghai, Shenzhen, and Guangzhou.

At the same time as channel innovation, Geely Galaxy has created new service standards around users.

In terms of store management, Geely Galaxy has developed a unified and rigorous service management system, and has comprehensively improved service standards through regular training and assessment, service quality evaluation, and in-store counseling.

At the talent level, Geely Galaxy formulates expert development plans such as test drive experts, experience experts, and delivery experts, and provides corresponding professional services for users at different stages of car purchase in the store. At the same time, 100% full-staff advanced training is used in store talent training to form high-standard service quality from the source of talents, and eliminate the chaos of "unprofessional and poor attitude".

At the daily operation level, considering the pain points of high communication cost and asymmetric information in the traditional 4S model, Geely Galaxy specially created a "digital exhibition hall" to connect the full link of user car purchase by digital means, and realize the double improvement of service efficiency and user experience. Users can skip the annoying bargaining process and place orders directly through the online payment platform to visually track the status of the vehicle anytime, anywhere.

At present, the first model of Geely Galaxy series, Geely Galaxy L7, has been fully launched in major exclusive stores, achieving "delivery on the market".

In addition to the Geely Galaxy L7, this year’s Geely Galaxy series will also launch new models including the intelligent electric hybrid car L6 and the pure electric model E8, which will continue to bring high-value travel experiences to users.

Digital technology penetrates the front, middle and back ends of the industry, and Dongguan builds a new "moat" for the furniture industry

  How to seize the new opportunities of digital transformation in the era of digital economy is a must-answer for Dongguan furniture industry to achieve high-quality development.

  As a famous furniture manufacturing city in China, Dongguan’s furniture industry is famous at home and abroad. As a characteristic industry in Dongguan, how to seize the new opportunities of digital transformation in the digital economy era is a must-answer for the furniture industry to achieve high-quality development.

  At the beginning of this year, Dongguan proposed to promote the digital transformation of the furniture industry cluster, with a clear transformation goal of personalized customization transformation, using digital technology to penetrate the front, middle and back ends of the furniture industry, extending from manufacturing business to high added value at both ends of the value chain, and realizing the transformation from "production + sales" to "product + service" by 2025.

  Industry insiders said that, unlike other industries, the furniture industry is still a non-standard industry to a large extent. There are many product materials, complex processes, and small order volumes. Its digital transformation is difficult to achieve in one step. Although some leading enterprises have taken the lead in digitalization, the digital transformation of Dongguan furniture industry is still in its infancy.

  Lin Guorong, vice chairperson of the China Furniture Brand Alliance, said that most of the furniture industry in Dongguan produces high-end home products, which also makes the digital transformation of the furniture industry in Dongguan more difficult. "But Dongguan’s advantages are also obvious. Relying on industrial Internet platforms such as Huawei Cloud and Wewin Big Data, the furniture industry will have great technical advantages in digital transformation, and will explore more local solutions for the digital transformation of Dongguan furniture industry clusters."

  Industry digital transformation is still in its infancy

  According to the digital transformation roadmap planned by Dongguan, the digital transformation of the furniture industry cluster mainly involves four parts: leading enterprises to create digital transformation system integration solutions; support enterprises to transform production lines, develop intelligent, collaborative and flexible production and processing models, and promote enterprises to transform into new production models such as personalized customization and modular furniture; promote the application of advanced furniture design technologies such as virtual simulation and 3D design, and strengthen the intelligent design of furniture products linked with smart home systems; guide enterprises to accurately grasp the end point retail situation.

  However, combing the digitization process of Dongguan furniture industry can find that, in addition to the leading enterprises "one ride without dust", the vast majority of enterprises are "jogging in small steps" according to their own actual conditions, and are not in a hurry to digitalize in an all-round layout. The digital transformation of the furniture industry presents a bipolar phenomenon.

  Mousse health sleep joint stock company isDongguanThe only listed company in the furniture industry, as an industry leader, is undoubtedlyDongguanThe "leader" of the digital transformation of the furniture industry. Entering the Mousse intelligent digital factory, the large screen of the industrial Internet will collect the layout and real-time progress of all kinds of equipment. In the production area, the bed net spring machine intelligently forms the string net, and the automatic edge machine operates in an orderly manner.

  Due to non-standard products, the home furnishing industry has been facing many pain points such as high cost of personalized production and too much reliance on manpower. Mousse, on the other hand, has installed a "smart brain" in the factory by building an Industry 4.0 intelligent manufacturing system based on the soft furniture industry, allowing custom home furnishings to have flexible production lines and carry out modular and large-scale production.

  In recent years, Mousse has introduced world-class automated and intelligent equipment and industrial processes such as Siemens. At the same time, it is equipped with an intelligent decision management platform. It integrates CRM, SAP, MES, WMS and other full systems to open up the integrated production process of orders. Production personnel can monitor and analyze the system data of each product in real time. On-demand customized C2M business model can quickly schedule production according to customer personalized and non-standard customized production needs. Customers are fully automated and visual processes from order placement to product delivery, making it one of the most automated production workshops in China’s furniture manufacturing industry.

  Unlike Mousse, Dongguan Chuangyu Industrial Co., Ltd. chose to "gradually transfer" on the road of digital transformation. In early July, Chuangyu joined hands with Guan Enterprise Shufu to complete the upgrade and closure of Enterprise Resource Planning, and 17 major modules such as business management, group operation, and material management have been launched. Through Shufu Enterprise Resource Planning, Chuangyu Group has opened up data sharing in material control, finished product warehouse management, sales, and procurement, so as to realize data transmission between the brand end and the factory end, improve production efficiency and reduce error rates.

  Southern finance media reporter learned that as the first step of digital transformation, many furniture enterprises in Dongguan have settled in Enterprise Resource Planning. But most enterprises have only penetrated the internal management link, connecting the front-end supply chain, back-end marketing, store end points and service links, and have not fully realized the integration and digitalization of the whole process. The digital transformation of the production line is still in the initial stage due to the high cost and complicated process.

  "At present, our digital equipment is only for the early standardization of cutting, edge sealing, punching and other aspects. Last year, we introduced a device for the manufacture of wooden door patterns, which can realize digital three-dimensional cutting. But we have more than 40 processes, which are more complicated, and some process digital equipment is still difficult to achieve." Lin Guorong, chairperson of Chuangyu Group, introduced.

  Let products and designs take the lead in digitalization

  Many industry insiders said that most of Dongguan mainly produces high-end home furnishing products, with extremely high requirements for craftsmanship and higher difficulty in digital transformation. Take Rongma Furniture as an example, as a high-tech enterprise with a global professional designer and R & D team, the main production of sofas includes more than ten processes such as nail racks, cotton, and leather, all of which are completed by workers by hand. "Whether the sofa is well done or not, whether it is full or not, depends on manual realization," Rongma Furniture technicians said.

  At the same time, the government advocates the transformation of enterprises to new production models such as personalized customization and modular furniture, requiring them to adjust their processes according to customer needs. They also face problems such as the large number of non-standardized links and the difficulty of large-scale output due to small quantities.

  Faced with the challenges of transformation, many companies have turned to breaking through, taking the lead in digitizing their products and designs, promoting the application of advanced technologies such as virtual simulation and 3D design, strengthening the segmentation of the population, strengthening the iterative upgrade of smart home systems and products, and climbing towards high value-added links.

  "We are currently the first to digitize product design. This year, through AI intelligent design, we have realized the virtual simulation of the exhibition hall. Consumers can experience products interactively on the Internet, accelerating the digitalization process of our flexible production," said Lin Guorong, chairperson of Chuangyu Group.

  Using the core technology of Industry 4.0 to combine the Internet, big data, Internet of Things, etc. with industrial production, create a flexible production chain, realize the interconnection of factories, consumers, products and information data, and gradually realize the production and service, is the inevitable direction of the furniture industry. As an important territory with the strongest interaction and experience in the home furnishing industry, soft furniture has brought new growth points to the furniture industry. Relevant statistics show that it is expected that by 2023, the global smart home market will reach 510 billion yuan. The huge market space of smart home has attracted major enterprises to enter the market. The digital transformation of Dongguan furniture industry is the epitome of it.

  In the field of smart home, Mousse has long created a "tailor-made personal healthy sleep system" in the industry. The newly developed T10 intelligent healthy sleep system can monitor heart rate, snoring, and deep sleep through built-in sensors in the mattress. When users have sleep problems, the Legend26 smart healthy sleep system will tailor sleep solutions, provide psychological intervention guidance such as sleep music and CBTI, and realize closed-loop management of the smart healthy sleep ecosystem.

  As one of the first companies in China to lay out smart homes with smart furniture as an entry point, Rongma Furniture’s Livable Home brand has become one of the first companies to enjoy the benefits of the smart home industry. Walking into the smart exhibition hall of Rongma Furniture, with the help of "artificial intelligence + Internet of Things" technology, customers issue instructions to artificial intelligence "Xiaole": open the viewing mode, the curtains in the house will automatically close, and the sofa will also be adjusted to a comfortable angle. Livable Home injects artificial intelligence and Internet of Things technology into sofas, beds and other furniture items to create a "smart home".

  Looking at the digital transformation process of Dongguan furniture industry cluster, it can be seen that actively integrating into the development trend of smart home is a highlight of the digital transformation of Dongguan furniture industry. Based on its own smart platform, creating a cloud platform interface that can be opened to the outside world, connecting to Huawei Hongmeng system, and promoting the home to upgrade to the smart IoT healthy field will be an important direction for the digital transformation of the industrial cluster in the future.

  Big data and artificial intelligence deeply empower the industry

  Southern finance media reporter survey found that although walking in the forefront of digital transformation, and Dongguan furniture industry cluster development has become a general trend, but due to different enterprises production and operation mode, and the degree of embedding of the industrial chain is different, leading furniture enterprises did not output a set of unified applicable to the industry’s digital transformation integrated solutions, each enterprise’s digital system, equipment, direction, etc. are independently customized, the status quo of information islands is obvious, furniture industry cluster digital transformation still maintains the "go it alone" situation.

  With the foundation of industrial software in the early years, Foshan Weishang Furniture, which has a certain Internet gene, has become a benchmark enterprise in the custom home furnishing industry, and actively provides digital intelligence transformation solutions for upstream and downstream enterprises in the industry, shaping a classic path of digital transformation for furniture enterprises. And in Dongguan, such a case is about to be born.

  Walking into the small laboratory of Interface Technology Co., Ltd., located in Songshan Lake, several 6-axis industrial robots and automation equipment are conducting research and development and production of various products.

  As a technology-based innovation enterprise engaged in supply-side technology development and channel expansion in the furniture industry, Interface Technology has accumulated a lot of technical experience in the use of industrial 6-axis robots for processing processes including sheet metal, square material, soft material milling, surface forming, and supporting tooling equipment. It is mainly used in single-piece to small-batch production, targeting the majority of small and medium-sized furniture enterprises.

  "In terms of solid wood furniture, the technology can initially meet the customization needs of some high-end customers. At the same time, due to the establishment of product and process databases, the robot production process makes it possible to produce single pieces to small batches on demand," said Wang Huaiqun, head of the interface technology department.

  At present, Interface Technology is actively seeking cooperation with small and medium-sized furniture enterprises in Dongguan. "We hope to build intelligent furniture production units that can empower small and medium-sized enterprises, truly solve the practical difficulties of small and medium-sized furniture enterprises in digital transformation, and launch intelligent manufacturing system solutions for the furniture industry that can be implemented." Jiang Wei, founder of the company, said.

  In terms of solving the information islands between enterprises, Dongguan furniture enterprises actively use Huawei Cloud, Wewin big data and other industrial Internet platforms for digital transformation. Lin Guorong told the Southern Finance and Economics All Media reporter that he has established a separate technology company and joined hands with Huawei to create a "data Rubik’s Cube". "We hope to create a solution together with Huawei, and use a central platform to link different software and systems in the integration industry. Enterprises bring their own data to the station. As a peer-to-peer exchange, the platform will provide enterprises with corresponding user portrait analysis, logistics matching services based on big data, etc."

  "Making big data and artificial intelligence technology deeply empower the industry is the core goal of the digital transformation of Dongguan’s furniture industry in the future," Lin Guorong said.

  (Author: Zheng Kangxi, a trainee reporter for Southern Finance and Economics All Media, Editor: Yu Changhuan)

Did you ask for speeding? Didi driver stabbed passengers late at night

  China News Service, Beijing, November 13 (Lang Lang) At around 3:00 a.m. on November 9, a knife attack by a Didi driver occurred in Nanjing, causing a dispute between the two sides due to passengers demanding that the driver speed up in the tunnel.

  Didi said that after verifying the recording in the car of the order, it was found that the passenger asked the driver to speed during the journey; while the passenger said in an interview with the China News Service reporter that he did not ask the driver to speed, but only to be as fast as possible within the speed limit.

  The injured passengers have responded to the incident online. Some netizens believe that the speed limit for crossing the tunnel is stipulated by law, and passengers are unreasonable; others question why the driver is carrying a knife?

  The scene of the incident, pictures provided by the interviewees

  Dispute 1: Did the passenger ask the driver to speed?

  At around 1am on November 9, Mr. Wang called for an express train through "Didi Chuxing" on the Alipay terminal and went from Nanjing South Railway Station to his residence on Huju Road. He recalled to a reporter from China News Service that because he was in a hurry to go home and video with his girlfriend, when the car reached the Qingliangmen tunnel, "I saw that there was no car in the tunnel, so I asked the driver to drive quickly." The driver refused Mr. Wang on the grounds of speed limit. The two sides immediately quarreled.

  According to Mr. Wang’s account, after the car drove out of the tunnel to near Hohai University, the driver asked Mr. Wang to get out of the car, and he also got out of the car. The two had a physical altercation. Mr. Wang pinned the driver to the ground, and the driver showed a knife and stabbed Mr. Wang in the right arm.

  "The knife hit the bone, and blood spurted out immediately." Mr. Wang said that he couldn’t see where the other party took out the knife in the night, but only remembered that it was a black dagger about 10cm long.

  Mr. Wang said that after he called the police, the driver scolded: "It’s good that you didn’t stab to death."

  "He also said that he had just stabbed someone two days ago, and his uncle was the director of the Public Security Bureau." Mr. Wang said that after the incident, the driver Liu was taken away by the police and was criminally detained. Mr. Wang was sent to the hospital’s intensive care unit for a broken vein. Due to excessive blood loss (about 1000cc), he fainted three times before and after, and is currently recovering.

  On the 12th, in an interview with China News Service, Didi replied to the matter, saying that the platform had verified the in-car recording of the order: the passenger asked the driver to speed during the journey, but after the driver refused, the two sides had an altercation, which then escalated into a physical conflict.

  The reporter asked Mr. Wang many times "whether the driver is required to speed", and Mr. Wang always made it clear that he only asked the driver to drive faster within the speed limit, not to speed.

  The driver was detained and unable to be interviewed.

  Passengers receiving treatment, photos provided by interviewees

  Dispute 2: Why do drivers carry knives? Does the platform allow it?

  In addition to the "Rashomon" "whether speeding is required", there is another point of debate in this incident – why does the driver have a knife?

  Screenshots of netizens’ comments

  According to Didi’s disclosure, platform data shows that the driver of the Dongfeng Fengxing Jingyi X6, which Mr. Wang was riding, has obtained a driver’s license for online car-hailing in Nanjing, with a history of receiving more than 10,000 orders. Past passengers have rated it as five-star.

  According to a report by Jiangsu media "Wusu.com", a staff member of Didi Chuxing said in an interview: The company expressly stipulates that drivers are not allowed to bring controlled knives on the bus. As for why drivers carry daggers with them, as of the press release, Didi has not responded positively.

  In a reply to the media, Didi said: "After receiving the relevant information, the platform immediately set up an emergency response team. On the one hand, the staff was assigned to visit the hospital at noon to visit the injured, pay medical expenses in advance, and ensure that the injured were fully and timely treated. On the other hand, actively cooperate with the police to investigate the incident."

  "Next, we will step up efforts to educate drivers on safety and platform rules, guide drivers and passengers to communicate in a civilized and rational manner, and resolve disputes through reasonable and legal channels," Didi said.

  Didi: One wave has not been leveled, and the hitchhiker has just been back online.

  This is not the first time something has happened to Didi.

  On the evening of May 5, 2018, Li, a flight attendant in Zhengzhou, was killed while riding a Didi ride-hailing car. On August 24 of the same year, Zhao, a 20-year-old woman in Yueqing, Zhejiang, was killed while riding a Didi ride-hailing car. One hundred days, two lives, Didi announced that it would offline its ride-hailing business nationwide.

  In March 2019, a Didi driver in Changde, Hunan Province, died after being stabbed more than 20 times by a passenger named Yang.

  Not long ago, on November 6, Didi announced the trial operation plan of Didi Hitch: it will be launched in seven cities including Harbin and Beijing from November 20. The plan has also been adjusted due to the controversy over "whether it discriminates against women".

  According to the Economic Daily, in July this year, Didi Chuxing held a hitch media communication meeting in Beijing. "I’m just afraid." Liu Qing, president of Didi Chuxing, admitted at the meeting that the team was "rather cowardly" and waited so long because he was afraid. "Who is so sure that they can launch a 100% safe product?"

The future of NIO is ecological?

Article | Interesting understanding of business, Li Wenqi

In addition to selling cars, what else can car companies sell? The answer may subvert your perception.

Recently, Huiding Insurance Brokerage Co., Ltd. (hereinafter referred to as "Huiding Insurance Brokerage") changed its corporate name to NIO Insurance Brokerage Co., Ltd. This move has attracted widespread attention because it is understood by industry insiders as the acceleration of NIO’s layout in the insurance sector.

Image credit: Qichacha

In recent years, not only NIO, but also the number of new energy vehicle companies that value the auto insurance market has gradually increased. Xiaopeng, Ideal, BYD and Tesla have all made plans.

Dong Hao, a veteran in the automotive industry, said that compared with traditional property insurance companies, new energy vehicle companies entering the new energy vehicle insurance market have more advantages in vehicle loss assessment and insurance premium estimation. Car companies can use this as a service breakthrough point and develop more high-profit after-car ecosystem services.

But just like the two sides of the coin, can the beautiful new energy auto insurance really help NIO develop the after-car ecosystem? And, how much support will the continuous cross-border NIO give to the auto insurance business after the launch of mobile phones, charging piles and other products? This may be the point that the current industry pays more attention to.

01. Crowded car insurance track, NIO is catching up

According to the latest statistics released by the Ministry of Public Security, as of the end of September 2023, the national new energy vehicle ownership reached 18.21 million, accounting for 5.5% of the car ownership. From the first to the third quarter of 2023, 5.198 million new energy vehicles were registered nationwide, an increase of 40% year-on-year, accounting for 28.5% of the new car registration.

There is no doubt that the outbreak of the new energy vehicle market has made new energy vehicle insurance a huge blue ocean market. Soochow Securities estimates that by 2025, the scale of new energy vehicle insurance premiums will reach 186.50 billion yuan, accounting for 17.9% of the total proportion of vehicle insurance premiums; by 2030, this scale will reach 454.10 billion yuan, accounting for 32.1% of the proportion of vehicle insurance premiums.

For this huge and promising market, a number of new energy vehicle companies have entered the market.

In July 2018, XPeng Motors established Guangzhou XPeng Motors Insurance Agency, which was later renamed Guangzhou Smart Choice Consulting Services Co., Ltd.; in 2020, Tesla Insurance Brokerage Co., Ltd. was established in Shanghai; Li Auto also fully acquired Yinjian Insurance Brokerage Co., Ltd. in June last year, and later changed its name to Beijing Ideal Insurance Brokerage Co., Ltd. At the 2022 Annual General Meeting, BYD Chairperson Wang Chuanfu said that BYD would enter the new energy automobile insurance industry.

There are many benefits to the deployment of new energy vehicles in the field of auto insurance – after obtaining the relevant insurance license, new energy vehicle companies can configure insurance through car owners to form a complete closed loop of car manufacturing, sales, and after-sales services, which is expected to become a new profit growth point for car companies.

In this context, it is logical for NIO to accelerate the layout of insurance. As early as the beginning of 2022, NIO invested in the establishment of NIO Insurance Brokerage Co., Ltd., with a registered capital of 50 million yuan; but unfortunately, until the company was cancelled, the company did not obtain relevant qualifications, let alone carry out related insurance business.

The reason is actually very simple. Insurance qualifications themselves are a scarce resource. In recent years, the insurance intermediary market has developed rapidly, but there are also pain points of uneven operation quality of intermediaries. Regulators have tightened the approval of insurance intermediary licenses.

But this did not discourage NIO’s determination to explore the insurance market, and instead looked for a "curve" entry route. In December 2022, Anhui NIO Data Technology Co., Ltd., controlled by NIO founder Li Bin, wholly invested in Huiding Insurance Brokerage, and then the original executives also withdrew one after another. It was not until September this year that Huiding Insurance Brokerage changed its name to NIO Insurance Brokerage, and NIO finally went official in its own insurance business.

Picture source: NIO Insurance Broker official website

For this acquisition, NIO did not disclose the specific transaction amount. But according to the market situation, it will not be too low. For example, when BYD transferred 100% equity of Yi’an Property Insurance this year, it spent 4 billion yuan to invest in insurance licenses with higher "gold content". In this regard, some market analysts said that the application for relevant license qualifications in the insurance industry is relatively long. NIO’s operation of Huiding Insurance Brokerage is behind "using money for time". It is naturally easier to buy chickens and lay eggs than to raise big chickens and then lay eggs.

"But the insurance industry is more complicated, and it’s not a one-day job." Zhang Xiang, a visiting professor at the Yellow River Institute of Science and Technology and an automotive industry research institute, said to "Interesting Business": "NIO obtains qualifications through acquisitions, and then opens up sales, insurance, after-sales and other links. For the insurance business, it can deeply cultivate the precise customer group, which is a big advantage. But it should be noted that new energy vehicle insurance is not a profitable business at the moment."

02. Is there enough "ammunition"?

The license qualification is grafted through the "banknote ability", and the subsequent challenges that NIO has to face are the financial ability, technical ability and network layout. No matter what, stronger "banknote ability" is required. "Especially the financial ability level is a big test for new energy vehicle companies," said Mr. Fei, an industry insider.

Because behind the blue ocean of new energy vehicle insurance, there is a hidden high compensation pressure and the resulting general loss. Shenwan Hongyuan Group’s research report shows that the current new energy vehicle insurance compensation rate generally exceeds 85%, and the industry is facing greater underwriting loss pressure.

Zeng Yi, general manager of China Pacific Insurance Property and Casualty Insurance, has also publicly stated that the insurance rate of new energy vehicles is nearly double that of fuel vehicles, and the year-on-year increase in automobile travel in the first half of this year has posed a certain pressure on the underwriting cost of new energy vehicles. China Pacific Insurance’s 2022 interim results show that the new energy vehicle insurance premium grew rapidly in the first half of last year, accounting for 6.6%. However, the new energy vehicles underwritten by Pacific Insurance Property and Casualty Insurance are still losing money.

A set of data obtained by the reporter of the Economic Observer also shows that the insurance rate and compensation rate of new energy vehicles are at a high level. In the first half of 2023, the number of new energy vehicle insurance settled compensation cases increased by 1021.9% year-on-year, and the average compensation for resolved cases was 5801 yuan, an increase of 764 yuan compared with the same period in 2022. However, the average insurance premium for new energy vehicle insurance was only 4081 yuan, a decrease of 47 yuan compared with 2022.

All kinds of phenomena have confirmed that the new energy compensation amount is currently much higher than the insurance premium income. This also means that all players entering the new energy vehicle insurance field must prepare sufficient ammunition. So, is NIO ready?

At the end of August this year, NIO-SW (09866) announced its unaudited financial results for the second quarter ended in the first half of 2023. Data show that NIO’s revenue in the second quarter of 2023 was 8.7717 billion yuan, a year-on-year decrease of 14.8%; gross profit was 870 billion yuan, a year-on-year decrease of 93.5%; net loss was 6.0558 billion yuan, an increase of 119.6%; adjusted net loss was 5.4457 billion yuan, an increase of 140.2%.

Image source: Screenshot of earnings report

From the perspective of the general environment, new car-making forces have shown varying degrees of losses; in the first half of this year, Li Auto’s total revenue was 47.44 billion yuan, and its net loss was 3.24 billion yuan. In comparison, NIO’s loss situation is much more serious.

According to the annual report of NIO-SW (09866), between 2018 and 2022, although NIO’s total revenue is growing, it has been in a state of loss. The losses in the five years were 23.328 billion yuan, 11.413 billion yuan, 5.3041 billion yuan, 4.02 billion yuan and 144.37 yuan. By the first half of this year, NIO’s net loss has exceeded 10 billion yuan, which is 10.926 billion yuan.

What can be seen is that in the context of the recovery of the new energy vehicle market in the first half of this year, NIO still maintained a situation where revenue and gross profit continued to decline and losses continued to expand. Whether it is a single quarter or the entire first half of the year, NIO’s net profit attributable to the parent set a record low for the same period in history.

In terms of delivery, NIO’s situation is also not optimistic. According to public data, NIO delivered 15,641 vehicles in September this year, an increase of 43.8% year-on-year and a decrease of 20% month-on-month. It was the most severe decline in the sales list of new energy vehicles in September.

Revenue decline, delivery decline, but NIO did not reduce investment. According to the financial report data, in the second quarter of this year, NIO’s development investment reached 3.34 billion yuan, close to Tesla’s 3.98 billion yuan, but significantly higher than the ideal 2.43 billion yuan and XPeng Motors 1.37 billion yuan. Statistics can be seen from the previous data, starting from the fourth quarter of 2022, NIO’s R & D expenses have exceeded 3 billion yuan for three consecutive quarters.

It is equivalent to saying that behind NIO’s bet on auto insurance, NIO’s own financial performance and delivery are not optimistic. In the future, whether it can provide support at the auto insurance level depends on the importance of the business in the NIO ecosystem.

"If NIO’s main business is doing very well and can give greater support to the auto insurance business, then overall, auto insurance must be the icing on the cake for NIO," Mr. Fei added: "On the contrary, if its own losses increase, coupled with the high underwriting pressure of auto insurance, the pressure on NIO will be relatively large in the short term."

03. Crossing the border all the way, what is NIO in a hurry?

To the outside world, NIO is less and less like a car company. This indifference is mainly due to NIO’s full range of crossovers – mobile phones, charging stations and now car insurance business.

In June this year, it was reported that the NIO mobile phone had passed the MIIT radio approval; as expected, on September 21, NIO Innovation and Technology Day, NIO released the first ship mobile phone, NIO Phone. According to Li Bin, "NIO makes mobile phones not because mobile phone companies cross the border into the automotive industry, nor do they rely on mobile phones to make money, but NIO users need a mobile phone that is undoubtedly linked to NIO."

But in the eyes of many users, this is not the case. On social platforms, many netizens complained that "it is easier to adapt NIO to more models. The probability of buying another mobile phone alone is not high, and buying a car and giving a mobile phone is almost the same." "It is obviously something that can be done by an app, but you have to develop a mobile phone!" The topic of who the NIO mobile phone is sold to has also triggered widespread discussion.

Image source: Weibo

In addition to the heavy injection of mobile phones, NIO also continues to invest in the field of supplementary energy. By the end of 2022, NIO had 1,315 replacement stations; in early 2023, Li Bin put down his big talk and wanted to build another 1,000 replacement stations. According to NIO’s official data, as of October 20, NIO has arranged a total of 1,969 replacement stations, 3,252 charging stations, and 936,544 third-party charging piles.

Industry analyst Yu Shengmei said that the current construction of power stations is fragmented and chaotic, and the industry is expected to enter the fast lane after the establishment of the national standard. Whoever has the first-mover advantage will be able to enjoy the dividends first.

But at present, it is difficult for the NIO power exchange model to rely on itself to make profits in the short term. According to the calculation of Oriental Securities, generally speaking, the power station reaches break-even, and the utilization rate is about 20% or more, that is, each station needs to serve 88 times a day to barely make a loss. According to NIO President Shen Fei, the break-even line of NIO power station is about 50-60 orders a day, and the current average daily order volume of NIO power station is 35-36 orders.

From a product perspective, this is indeed a good story, but so far, this good story has not brought much benefit in business practice.

As early as 2013, Tesla had experimented with replacing power stations in the United States, but was troubled by factors such as construction costs and profitability, and finally chose to give up. Similarly, behind the replacement of power by NIO owners is the reality that NIO "keeps changing power and loses money". Because the cost of adding replacement stations is extremely high, it is a typical asset-heavy business.

The data shows that the cost of the first generation of NIO substation is about 250-3 million, about 205 are established, and the cost of the second generation substation is 1.50 million yuan, and the number is 1100. According to this data, NIO has roughly invested more than 5 billion yuan in the substation.

Since June this year, NIO’s third-generation power station has maintained a construction speed of 120-150 seats per month. If the cost of the second-generation power station is estimated, NIO’s investment in the construction of power stations in 2023 is expected to be more than 1.50 billion yuan.

In addition to power station equipment, battery storage, battery depreciation, etc., it also requires personnel costs, site expenses, and commercial electricity bills. This is equivalent to saying that NIO has invested more than 10 billion yuan in power station replacement.

Moreover, this business, which was originally intended to be blessed by NIO’s "service", has also become a point of complaint for car owners. In April this year, NIO made adjustments to user rights and interests. Since June 1, the number of free power changes for the first owners of some models has been adjusted to 4 times per month. Previously, this right corresponded to 4-6 free power changes per month according to whether charging piles were installed.

According to NIO’s explanation, free power exchanges will gradually decline until they are fully charged on demand. From a business perspective, this is understandable, but at the same time, such adjustments also make NIO, which has always won by "service", more passive.

Auto insurance, mobile phones, and energy supplementation systems are all major projects worth tens of billions of dollars. At present, whether it is just starting auto insurance, mobile phones that have already launched products, or power stations that have invested tens of billions of dollars, they have not brought profits to NIO. Instead, they are likely to become a drag on NIO’s business.

Standing at the moment, the bigger question from the outside world is, what should NIO, which is gradually tearing off the "service" label, use to impress users?

As one of the three giants of the "new car manufacturing forces", NIO’s story is very good, but returning to the essence of business, performance is the basic set. Especially, as the industry competition intensifies, NIO, which has been expanding its own boundaries, and its own performance pressure, may become more and more difficult.

References:

1. Qubit, "Reassessing NIO, It’s Time"

2. International Finance News, "Cars can’t be sold," Loss King "NIO wants to make mobile phones across borders"

3. Finance and Economics Eleven, "While making large losses and investing heavily, what does NIO think?"

4. Shanghai Securities News, "Is NIO going to sell insurance?"

In addition to "Traveling Frog", these posture games will also revolutionize your understanding of online games

There is such a game, there is no competition, no level, no task, only purely focused on "beauty and enjoyment" itself.

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Don’t think you’re talking about the popular Traveling Frog these days – these comments are two feature games given by professional gamers to the domestic independent team Tag Design: "Mortise and Mortise" and "Folding Fan".

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Unlike those games that emphasize competition, "Mortise and Mortise" and "Folding Fan" are popular science products with the theme of introducing traditional Chinese culture and craftsmanship. Players only need to swipe or click from start to finish, and the operation cannot be simpler. However, players can get a lot of satisfaction: "Mortise and Mortise" and "Folding Fan" provide detailed 3D models for each handicraft for users to watch and split 360 degrees; in simple swiping and clicking, players can learn all the structural characteristics, production process and related history of "Mortise and Mortise" and "Folding Fan"; in "Folding Fan", they can even participate in the 16 steps from choosing bamboo to making a fan.

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"Mortise and tenon" game screen

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"Folding Fan" game screen

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That’s right, "Mortise and Mortise" and "Folding Fan" are both functional games, and they are online game types that have gradually emerged in China since this year. When many people regard online games as "monsters", functional games can often make people "treat each other differently" because they not only make people realize the value of "education and entertainment" again, but also make games play a role in cultural protection, technological innovation and other fields.

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Functional games drive the transformation of the game industry

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If traditional online games emphasize entertainment, then functional games refer to those categories of games whose main purpose is to solve real social and industrial problems. Therefore, if traditional entertainment games and functional games are divided, even if they do not emphasize competition, "Travel Frog" still belongs to the former, while "Mortise and Mortise" and "Folding Fan" belong to the latter.

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Since the beginning of this year, the term "functional game" has begun to enter people’s field of vision, which is not unrelated to a message released by Tencent at the beginning of the year: Tencent announced that it will carry out a comprehensive layout of functional games from 2018, take functional games as one of the business Strategy and Development Direction, and plan to launch five categories of functional game products such as traditional culture, cutting-edge exploration, scientific exercise, scientific popularization, and parent-child interaction. Systematically explore and explore the positive social value of online games.

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In fact, "functional games", which are still a new term in China, have been relatively mature in the international development. Functional games are playing an increasingly important role in different fields. In layman’s terms, functional games can become a new medium for people to receive knowledge and skills through entertaining and entertaining, opening up new perspectives for people in terms of shortening the learning curve, accelerating the dissemination of professional knowledge, innovating scientific research models, improving corporate productivity and solving social problems.

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From the perspective of the international development of functional games, governments, enterprises and institutions in many developed countries and regions have regarded them as important skills training tools: the functional game "US Army" is used by the US Department of Defense for recruitment; "Emergency Commander" is used for drills for emergency disaster relief; "Code Orange" is used to train doctors to deal with mass casualty incidents; "Virtual Training Bank" provides financial analysis and risk management training for banks; functional game "Gabarello" for therapeutic purposes is used by Zurich Children’s Hospital for rehabilitation of brain injury patients….

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Industry insiders believe that with the wide application of functional games, functional games are driving the transformation of the game industry. In the United States, functional games have been in the forefront of the world in various market segments such as corporate training and education since 1994. In the UK, functional games have become a professional discipline and entered institutions of higher learning. In Switzerland, about 30% of game designers are engaged in the field of functional game design.

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Look, these are functional games.

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Compared with the foreign functional game market, the development and promotion of functional games in China is in the ascendant. Many people don’t even know what a "functional game" is. In this regard, the relevant departments of Tencent listed several functional games for reporters to illustrate the rich connotation of functional games:

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In terms of traditional culture and protection, the two functional games "Mortise and Mortise" and "Folding Fan" can make people more intuitively understand the subtlety of traditional skills; and in the function of "education and fun", the ingenious ideas of functional game developers are equally amazing.

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For example, "Moana" developed by the Belgian team Fishing Cactus is an educational functional game that specializes in exercising users’ typing skills. Players will play a little girl riding a fox in the game and go on an adventure in a 2.5D origami world. In different level scenarios such as snow, mountains, forests, etc., players need to use the special method of "typing" to fight monsters and solve puzzles. "Moana" is based on spelling and includes 8 different languages including Chinese, English, and French. The spelling of characters in the game will also be redesigned according to the setting language. Whether you are a typist or a beginner, you can find fun in the game.

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"Moana" game screen

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Also, "Euclidean Geometry" developed by the Russian team Horis is a mathematical game that uses rulers to draw and solve geometric puzzles. In the game, players need to make vertical lines, tangents, angle bisectors, circles and other geometric shapes on the plane through the rational use of drawing tools, and complete the level challenge in rigorous geometric logic. At the same time, players can continuously optimize the design to get the most elegant and concise solution in as few steps as possible. Overall, players can not only appreciate the beauty of geometry in the game, but also improve their logical thinking ability. Therefore, whether students or players who have left school can feel the mystery of geometry in the game.

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"European Geometry" game screen

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Tencent also revealed that in their functional game development plan, including the cooperation of Lego, they will launch functional games related to Lego building blocks through complementary advantages, so that more people, including parents and children, can learn while playing. Such games can not only educate and entertain, but also facilitate parent-child interaction.

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Functional games are a big industry

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In fact, the reason why functional games have developed rapidly in the international market is not unrelated to the economic value they contain. Tencent Research Institute has compiled statistics on more than 130 functional games and found that the combination of education and games is the most extensive, accounting for about 43% of the total, of which more than half of functional game products are used in primary and secondary education; about 19% of functional games are used in enterprises and business; medical functional games are ranked third, accounting for more than 16%. Among them, children’s medical games are the main ones, with content ranging from knowledge popularization to disease treatment. In addition to the above three fields, functional games are also widely used in different fields such as military, culture, and social management, involving all aspects of social life.

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The "cross-border" collection of games and different industries has generated huge economic value. Some institutions predict that games with cross-border applications will develop at a compound annual growth rate of 16.38% between 2015 and 2020, and the market size will reach 5.45 billion US dollars. In contrast, the development and application of functional games in our country is still in its infancy and needs to be vigorously developed.

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It is worth noting that the development of functional games is not only the task or interest of game companies. In recent years, the cross-border development of some enterprises has also further revealed the value of functional games. For example, IBM, Johnson & Johnson, Cisco and other companies have launched their own functional games, not only using them to train employees, but also combining games with their main business. For example, IBM has widely used games in internal businesses such as sales and Customer relationship operations, business information and data analytics; at the same time, in 2010, it first launched the cross-border game "CityOne" (literal translation: a city), which was designed, developed and produced by itself, to find urban planning solutions through role-playing. In addition, IBM has also integrated various new technologies developed by itself, such as process management, cloud computing, and collaboration, into the game, allowing players to learn how to use new technologies to help cities become smarter. After the launch of "CityOne", more than 8,000 people participated in the pre-registration process.

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Industry insiders therefore propose that the development of functional games is worthy of "admiration" from the outside world for the value of online games. For a long time, the domestic game industry has been burdened with huge social pressure, and traditional entertainment games have been controversial. But these views should not affect the development of functional games. In this context, it is necessary to improve the motivation and enthusiasm of industry and academia to develop functional games at the policy level, develop high-quality content, and then drive the whole society to gradually raise awareness of functional games and gradually accept their application in all walks of life.

Wang Jianlin VS Xu Jiayin: Thousands of differences

Preface · Thousands of differences 

An eminent monk, known as Master Kuan Lin, gave Wang Jianlin a verse when he was 92 years old: "When the madness rests, the phantom body melts, and the dust inside and outside is empty. The cave is clear and clear, and there are no obstacles, and there are thousands of differences."

That was in 1997, when Wang Jianlin, his Wanda Group, and his Wanda football team were both thriving.

At this time, Xu Jiayin had just founded Evergrande Group not long ago. Oh, at that time, it could not be called a group. At that time, Evergrande did not know whether tomorrow would be good or bad, and whether the rivers and lakes would be deep or shallow.

Wang Jianlin, who left the football circle, has finally come back. At this time, Evergrande has been the overlord of the Chinese Super League for many years.

In the past 20 years, things have changed, but the phrase "thousands of differences make sense at once" is not outdated – two people, the road they have traveled, thousands of differences, the style of two people, thousands of differences, and the two people entered the era of Chinese football. There were also thousands of differences, but now it is just: the same goal.

 One Genhong Miao is starting at the bottom 

In January 2018, at an internal meeting of Evergrande Group, Xu Jiayin talked about his childhood experience when he mentioned why he wanted "targeted poverty alleviation":

"When I was 1 year and 3 months old, my mother got sick and had no money or place to see a doctor. I just left like this, and I became half an orphan."

"When I was in middle school, I was far from home. I carried a basket to school every week. The basket contained a black nest made of sweet potatoes and sweet potato noodles, and a small bottle with a little salt, a few drops of sesame oil, and a little scallion in it. This is my weekly ration. Three meals a day, one sweet potato, one nest, and a bowl of salt water for each meal. In summer, it is very hot, and the black nest grows hairy in half a day. Wash it and continue to eat."

Xu Jiayin said that in today’s Wumeng Mountain District, he saw the poverty of his childhood. "There is no road, no water, no electricity," and several families live scattered in a few kilometers of ravines. Each household is a dilapidated thatched hut, relying on the little hillside in front of the house and behind the house to eat from the sky.

Wang Jianlin had never tasted such pain. Wang Jianlin joined the army at the age of 15. In 1970, at the age of 15, Wang Jianlin was the youngest soldier in the Fourth Frontier Defense Regiment of the Jilin Provincial Military Region. Before joining the army, Wang Jianlin graduated from high school and spent half a year living in a farm in Cangxi County, Sichuan Province, which is known as the hometown of Sydney.

In November 1970, the whole army carried out "camping training", icy and snowy, along the original route of Linhai Snow Plains where Yang Zirong destroyed mountain sculptures, Wang Jianlin began his first difficult journey in life.

The army gave him special care, not letting him carry a rifle, only giving him a pistol. Despite this, with 10 kilograms of equipment on his back, Wang Jianlin had to walk 40 kilometers on the snowy road every day. This was too hard for a 15-year-old child, but Wang Jianlin did not remember this hard work, but remembered a secret taught to him by the monitor.

During that march, during a meal, the squad leader told him a trick to eat more and be full: don’t pack too much when you pack a meal for the first time, and pack it again after a few bites, and you will be full the second time! With this strange move, Wang Jianlin finally persisted. At the end of the training, only more than 400 people in the team of more than 1,000 people were not left behind, and Wang Jianlin became one of the 40%.

Because of this cleverness and persistence, by the age of 28, Wang Jianlin had become the youngest regiment cadre in the army, but in 1986, in response to the country’s call for "million disarmament", 32-year-old Wang Jianlin bid farewell to his military career and 17 years of military life, leaving a deep imprint on Wang Jianlin.

Later, after Wang Jianlin became a businessperson, he mentioned this experience to his subordinates more than once, and was especially willing to proudly tell the secret that the monitor taught him to eat, "He regarded me as a brother." When Wang Jianlin became the head of the Wanda Group family, he also liked to talk about the word "brother": "My concept of happiness is very simple, and one of them is to let my brothers have food and make money."

As a metaphor, Xu Jiayin is the male version of Ashin in the Japanese drama "The Story of Ashin", while Wang Jianlin’s story is similar to "Days Related to Youth".

But they are all workaholics, and they are not young, but they have not seen any signs of that slack.

In 2000, Wanda quit the football circle. Five years later, in 2005, Wang Jianlin, who got out of the football circle, expanded his business to 20 billion yuan. The former green boss was not satisfied: "I will not be satisfied with 50 billion yuan. Once I achieve 100 billion yuan, I can consider retiring."

But now Wanda Group’s assets exceed 700 billion, and Wang Jianlin’s retirement is still a long way off.

And what about Xu Jiayin? One year, he went to Europe for more than ten days, which he described as the only vacation in so many years. As soon as Evergrande employees joined the company, they knew that overtime was normal and inevitable in this company, because that was what the boss did.

Xu Jiayin rarely takes weekends off, working more than 90 hours a week, and still maintains the habit of working every day until the early morning. Evergrande executives work an average of more than 80 hours a week, and mid-level cadres work an average of more than 60 hours a week. Xu Jiayin, who came from a poor background, attributes his success to hard work. "Without it, I can’t do anything."

When he was in Henan Wuyang Iron and Steel Company, Xu Jiayin didn’t take a day off for ten years. In the first ten years of his business, Xu Jiayin often got off work at one o’clock in the middle of the night. For fear of affecting his family’s rest, he lay on the sofa in the living room until 4 am to go to work.

Compared with Xu Jiayin, Wang Jianlin emphasizes regularity: he must go to bed at 11 o’clock every night, he must get up at 6 o’clock in the morning, he must arrive at the company at 7:10, and then, he will go to work. After going home, he will make a few phone calls. This call is to communicate with several core key members of his team about the situation of the day, and then, after finishing these, he will read the "Evening News", wash and sleep. If the weather is good in the morning, walk, take a walk, and if the weather is bad, it will be avoided.

The work styles of the two are similar, but there are huge differences. Xu Jiayin was born in poverty and worked hard from the bottom step by step. Now he still retains the style of "who called you poor, and you are on the top". What about Wang Jianlin? Wang Jianlin’s father is an old Red Army member of the Red Fourth Front Army. Wang Jianlin joined the army for 17 years and changed his career as a cadre of the Fourth Regiment of the Frontier Defense of the Jilin Provincial Military Region; he has two years of experience as a civil servant as the director of the People’s Government Office of Xigang District, Dalian… All these things make Wang Jianlin seem "well-connected".

From the early experience, Wang Jianlin was a product within the system, while Xu Jiayin had more traces outside the system.

 Second, you hate me for being born late, I hate you for being born early 

Wang Anyi said that for a person, there are always two faces that are hard to forget – the face of his mother and the face of the city, which are the first memories. The era of Wanda football is the age of enlightenment for professional football in China, just as Teresa Teng is to pop and Cui Jian is to rock. Enlightenment things are very different, but one thing remains constant – the world that suddenly opened up in the era of enlightenment, the enthusiasm that was suddenly aroused, like a flood, cannot be stopped.

Therefore, for many football fans, especially those in Dalian, Wanda is a love of enlightenment.

And for many fans, especially Hengda fans, the same is true of Hengda’s role.

Dalian Wanda used to be a winning teacher, and players’ income came more from bonuses. Wang Jianlin’s famous saying was: "If you win the game, the bonus will be doubled!" Wanda sometimes won the prize as high as 800,000, and even reached 1 million in a game, which was a sky-high price at that time.

For veteran players like Xu Hong and Han Wenhai, they can also be assigned to the "welfare housing" built by Wanda Group. After 1997, the Dalian Wanda team spent more than 50 million yuan a year, which is an astonishing figure. From this point of view, it is not an exaggeration to call Wang Jianlin one of the founders of "Jinyuan Football".

Of course, the 50 million yuan spent is also worth it. The year of investing in football is also the era when Dalian Wanda has a solid foundation in Dalian, because Dalian Wanda has won numerous honors for Dalian with this business card, and Dalian Wanda has also been invincible in the Dalian real estate market with this football business card.

For example, the Changchun community where Xu Hong and others lived was once enthusiastically sought after by Dalian people. In addition to the quality of the house itself, the common thought of many people who bought a house was "We live in the same community as Xu Hong"!

Wang Jianlin is a smart businessperson, and his huge investment in football has paid off. In 1998, a well-known research company in Beijing conducted a market survey of Wanda’s popularity in eight cities across the country. The survey subjects ranged in age from 8 to 70. The results showed that Wanda Group’s popularity ranked among the top five in the country, with the same popularity as Hongta Group and Haier Group.

Therefore, Wang Jianlin’s annual investment of more than 50 million yuan may be a "bubble" for football, but it is a perfect investment for his own business.

For Evergrande, investing in football has brought them a similar brand effect, which goes without saying.

If we want to summarize, there are too many similarities between Wanda and Hengda in the glory of football. When Wanda entered football, it was the beginning of Chinese professional football, which was a golden age; after Hengda bottom fishing entered Chinese football, it also ushered in a "new era" of Chinese football.

However, when Wanda was about to enter the lowest point of Chinese football, it took the lead in smelling the smell and decisively withdrew, and now Evergrande is also in the period of adjustment and consolidation after their high speed.

 One branch alone is not spring 

In 2011, Wanda Group announced its return to Chinese football in the "great situation" of Chinese football.

Looking back now, from that day on, the "confrontation" between Wanda and Evergrande began.

On July 2nd, this day, Hengda announced a news, they signed the MVP Conca of the Bundesliga League with a transfer fee of 10 million US dollars, Conca’s annual salary 7 million US dollars, after signing Conca, Hengda high-profile claims, Hengda finally brought world-class stars to Chinese football.

Naturally, the next day in the media, the news of Conca’s joining was overwhelming, and that day, July 3, another major event took place in Chinese football, that is, Wang Jianlin’s Wanda Group returned to Chinese football.

One south and one north, two major events in Chinese football, but what many people don’t know is that the process of signing Kong Card was arduous and tortuous, and the timing of announcing Kong Card’s joining was carefully arranged by Evergrande, because the date they chose was to get ahead of Wanda, no more, no less, just one day.

Evergrande is difficult to tolerate themselves in a lonely period, Hengda will always be in the trend of the wave, if there are competitors, then we must weaken the influence of the opponent, sure enough, if not for the joining of Kong Ka, in those days, football news will become Wanda’s world.

After the end of the Chinese Super League in 2011, the awards ceremony of the Chinese Super League was held in Guangzhou. Guangzhou Evergrande won 5 of the 10 awards including the league championship, the Golden Boot Award, the Golden Globe Award, the Best Division and the Most Social responsibility Club Award, becoming the biggest winner of the night.

However, after the award ceremony, the big winner said with disappointment: "We came out so much for the award ceremony, but we sold Wanda advertising." Because the award ceremony left Wanda enough time, and Wanda sent a spokesperson Shi Xueqing to speak on stage, while Guangzhou Evergrande, the league champion, did not have such treatment.

And that award ceremony was finally broadcast live on the CCTV comprehensive channel!

After returning to Chinese football in 2011 and taking over Dalian Football in 2018, Wanda’s package of plans to support Chinese football includes the following things:

First, Wanda became the title dealer of the Chinese Super League and raised the title fee to a record high; second, Wanda formed the overseas team of Hope Stars and sent a large number of post-95s to Europe; third, this is also the most controversial point, that is, a month before the start of the World Cup 20 in Brazil, Gao Hongbo was forcibly replaced with Camacho.

In retrospect, Wanda did indeed give a lot of support during the trough period after the anti-gambling and anti-crime crackdown in Chinese football, which made the gradually impoverished Chinese Football Association and the Chinese Super League go through the most difficult period. When Wanda ended the sponsorship period in 2014, Chinese football has obviously recovered, and various commercial sponsorships have come in one after another, and they have all improved on the basis of Wanda’s period. These are all irreducible historical contributions.

But the overall weakness of the national brand team makes Wanda’s plans time-consuming and thankless, and in the past seven years, Evergrande has established its own Evergrande dynasty by virtue of its achievements in the Chinese Super League and the AFC Champions League – the Chinese Super League has won seven consecutive championships, and the AFC Champions League has won twice.

Wanda finally understood a truth, only in the local base, Wanda’s every step in Chinese football is not a castle in the air, it will not be pointless, and Hengda arm-wrestling, why not? Why not? After all, the current Dalian side is already an upright Chinese Super League vassal.

It is foreseeable that after Wanda re-enters the foreground, it will bring great shocks to the Chinese Super League, and at this time, Evergrande is precisely in the moment of shrinking the front and adjusting and consolidating.

Xu Jiayin finally met Wang Jianlin in the field of professional football in China. This kind of excitement has been awaited by many fans for a long time.