Nio Chip Unit Raises $318 Million at Nearly $1.4 Billion Valuation
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Nio’s self-developed Shenji NX9031 chip is displayed at the company’s booth during Auto Shanghai 2025 on April 25, 2025. Photo: VCG
Nio Inc.’s chip subsidiary, GeniTech Co. Ltd., has agreed to raise more than 2.2 billion yuan ($318 million) in its first external funding round, valuing the business at nearly 10 billion yuan after the investment.
The electric-car maker said Thursday that GeniTech — better known as Shenji — signed an equity financing agreement with investors including Hefei State-Owned Capital Enterprise Investment and IDG Capital. The fundraising underscores Chinese new-energy vehicle makers’ accelerating push to develop proprietary semiconductors as they seek to lower manufacturing costs and reduce reliance on foreign suppliers such as Nvidia Corp. amid intensifying competition.
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- Nio’s chip unit, GeniTech (Shenji), raised over 2.2 billion yuan ($318M) from investors, reaching a post-investment valuation of nearly 10 billion yuan.
- As of June 2025, Shenji’s NS9031 is a 5nm chip powering Nio vehicles, with more than 150,000 units shipped; in-house chips reduced per-vehicle costs by nearly 10,000 yuan.
- Nio retains 62.7% of Shenji after the fundraising; Shenji spun off as an independent entity and formed a joint venture for smart-driving technology.
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Who’s Who
- Nio Inc.
- Nio Inc., a Chinese electric-car manufacturer, has spun off its chip division, GeniTech Co. Ltd. (Shenji), as an independent entity. Shenji recently raised over 2.2 billion yuan ($318 million) in external funding, valuing the business at nearly 10 billion yuan. Nio will retain a 62.7% stake. Shenji's NS9031 chip powers Nio vehicles, signifying the company's commitment to in-house chip development to reduce costs and reliance on foreign suppliers.
- GeniTech Co. Ltd.
- GeniTech Co. Ltd., also known as Shenji, is Nio Inc.'s chip subsidiary. It recently secured over 2.2 billion yuan ($318 million) in its first external funding round, valuing the company at nearly 10 billion yuan. Nio will retain a 62.7% stake. Shenji's flagship product, the NS9031, is a 5-nanometer chip for autonomous driving, powering Nio vehicles and exploring applications in robotics and AI.
- Hefei State-Owned Capital Enterprise Investment
- Hefei State-Owned Capital Enterprise Investment is an investor in Nio Inc.'s chip subsidiary, GeniTech Co. Ltd. This investment is part of GeniTech's first external funding round, which raised over 2.2 billion yuan. The Hefei government has a history of supporting Nio, having previously injected 2.8 billion yuan into the carmaker in early 2025.
- IDG Capital
- IDG Capital is an investor in GeniTech Co. Ltd., Nio Inc.'s chip subsidiary. They participated in GeniTech's first external funding round, which raised over 2.2 billion yuan ($318 million) and valued the business at nearly 10 billion yuan post-investment.
- Nvidia Corp.
- Nvidia Corp. is mentioned as a foreign supplier of chips that Chinese new-energy vehicle makers like Nio are seeking to reduce reliance on. Nio's CEO stated they spent over $300 million buying customized Nvidia chips in 2024. Nio's proprietary chips aim to lower costs and provide computing power equivalent to four externally sourced chips, suggesting a desire to move away from reliance on Nvidia.
- Oppo
- Oppo is mentioned as the former workplace of Bai Jian, who previously worked there as a hardware research-and-development executive. Bai Jian later joined Nio to lead their in-house chip team development.
- Xiaomi Corp.
- Xiaomi Corp. is mentioned in the article as the former employer of Bai Jian, who is now leading Nio's in-house chip team. Bai Jian was previously a hardware research-and-development executive at both Oppo and Xiaomi Corp.
- Axera Semiconductor Co. Ltd.
- In November 2025, Axera Semiconductor Co. Ltd. (安谋科技) formed a joint venture with Nio's chip subsidiary, Shenji, and OmniVision Group. This collaboration aims to license Shenji's advanced smart-driving technology, marking a strategic move for the companies.
- OmniVision Group
- OmniVision Group, also known as 豪威集团, is a company that has partnered with Nio's chip subsidiary, Shenji. In November 2025, OmniVision Group, along with Axera Semiconductor Co. Ltd., formed a joint venture with Shenji to license its advanced smart-driving technology.
- Tesla Inc.
- Tesla Inc. pioneered the strategy of designing proprietary semiconductors, a trend increasingly adopted by other automakers, especially Chinese new-energy vehicle startups, including Nio Inc. and XPeng Inc. This move aims to lower manufacturing costs and reduce reliance on foreign suppliers.
- XPeng Inc.
- XPeng Inc. is a Chinese new-energy vehicle startup that has developed its own "Turing" chip. This chip was launched in July 2025 in their G7 sport-utility vehicle to enhance computing efficiency for its AI models. The CEO, He Xiaopeng, stated that in-house chips enable automakers to customize computing capacity for specific algorithmic requirements, avoiding wasted resources compared to standardized solutions from suppliers.
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What Happened When
- 2021：
- Nio began assembling its in-house chip team under Bai Jian.
- 2024：
- Nio spent more than $300 million buying customized Nvidia chips.
- Early 2025：
- Hefei government injected 2.8 billion yuan into Nio in a separate investment.
- March 2025：
- Chairman and CEO William Li said that Nio's chip development costs over three years were equivalent to building 1,000 battery-swap stations.
- Late March 2025：
- Shenji’s flagship chip NS9031 began powering Nio vehicles.
- June 2025：
- Nio spun off the chip division as an independent entity, GeniTech (Shenji), with Li as chairman and Bai as general manager.
- June 2025：
- Chief financial officer Qu Yu said during an earnings call that integrating in-house chips into annual model upgrades reduced per-vehicle costs by nearly 10,000 yuan.
- July 2025：
- Li said Shenji is open to the broader industry and would consider bringing in outside capital.
- July 2025：
- XPeng Inc. launched its self-developed 'Turing' chip in its G7 SUV.
- November 2025：
- Shenji formed a joint venture with Axera Semiconductor Co. Ltd. and OmniVision Group to license its smart-driving technology.
- February 26, 2026：
- Nio announced GeniTech (Shenji) signed an equity financing agreement to raise more than 2.2 billion yuan in its first external funding round.
AI generated, for reference only
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