Chinese EV maker Nio is reportedly developing its own smartphone which is at a research phase that will take on Apple. Its CEO William Li revealed this and also said the company is exploring the production of its own phone. Nio wants to develop its own ecosystem much like the way Apple has its own ecosystem of products. Nio was founded in 2014 and has become one of the premier EV makers in the country and often is called the Tesla of China.
Over the years Nio has released multiple EV models like the ET7, ES8, EC6 and soon it will also have ET5. More recently, Nio also expanded its footprint outside of the Chinese market to Europe - Germany, and Norway.
Nio makes attractive electric cars that have autonomus capability
Nio intends to use its expertise in making EVs and leverage technology to create an ecosystem and unified experience for its customers which is much like what Apple is doing. The only difference is, that Apple started with the PC, then moved to the phone, and now has been developing its own electric car.
Nio's EVs are leveraging ultra-wideband technology (UWB) which is something Apple is now using on its phones. 60 percent of Nio's customers are iPhone users which is another motivation for the manufacturer.
Its CEO said on a talk show, "Think about it, if by 2025 an Apple model is released and 60 percent or more of NIO's users use Apple phones, NIO has no defense at all. If NIO doesn't do something today to prepare, it's not going to be fun at that point."
