Li Yinan, the founder of Scooter maker Niu Technologies, has jumped on the car-building bandwagon, local media outlet Pedaily.cn said on April 20.

Li is building a car, but just hasn't declared it because he's keeping a low profile, the report said, citing an investor source close to Li.

Niu Technologies was reported a month ago to be acquiring a BAIC BluePark New Energy plant in Changzhou, which was later denied by the company's CEO.

The plant will still be acquired, only by another entity called Niuchuang Technologies, which a new energy vehicle company incubated by Niu Technologies, the report said.

The first major shareholder of Niuchuang's branch in Changzhou, founded in 2020, is the same Li who is rumored to build the car, meaning he is the head of the company, according to data provider Tianyancha.

Niuchuang has 155 employees and over 350 outsourced, including R&D, industrial design, autonomous driving, and brand marketing, with team members from automotive and Internet companies in various countries.

As of the end of last year, Niu Technologies held cash flow, equivalents, time deposits, and short-term investments totaling RMB 1.1 billion. It is widely believed in the auto industry that at least RMB 20 billion is needed to build a car.

Last year there were rumors that Li's new energy vehicle project had already started, with the first vehicle being an extended-range SUV priced at RMB 200,000 ($30,776), similar to Li Auto's Li ONE.

'Warring States Era' undoubtedly here! Another Chinese tech firm steps into car-making industry

(Source: Niu Technologies)