Helped by its relatively stronger brand awareness, BYD sold far more new energy vehicles (NEVs) than many of its young competitors in August, but the Shenzhen-based automaker is now grappling with a problem: shrinking market share.

Last month, BYD sold 15,283 NEVs, representing a year-on-year drop of 8.6%, the company said in an announcement released on Monday. Sales of battery-powered vehicles and plug-in hybrids fell to 9,414 units and 4,595 units respectively last month.

Worse still, BYD reported a gloomier NEV sales figure for the period between January and August, during which the automaker sold a total of 91,060 NEVs, nearly 50% fewer than in the same period last year.

Comparatively, Nio and Li Auto, two Chinese electric vehicle startups, reported robust deliveries for August. New York-listed Nio delivered 3,965 electric vehicles last month, consisting of 2,840 ES6s and 1,125 ES8s, up 104% year-on-year, setting a new monthly delivery record. Nasdaq-traded Li Auto also logged a monthly sales record with deliveries of 2,711 Li ONE electric sports utility vehicles in August. Li Auto only rolled out the Li ONE, its first model, at the end of 2019, and has plans to launch a premium model in 2022.

This year, Li Auto and its peer Xpeng, a Guangzhou-based electric vehicle startup, have clearly increased their exposure to consumers because of their eye-catching U.S. IPOs, which followed Nio’s New York listing debut in 2018. What’s more, the three startups are also positioning themselves as tech-driven carmakers by touting their autopilot-powered vehicles.

Contact reporter Ding Yi (yiding@caixin.com)

Related: BYD Sees Sharp Drop in New-Energy Car Sales in November