Shanghai (ZXZC)- Ai Tiecheng, former general manager at WeWork Greater China, has joined NIO to serve as vice president of new strategic businesses and will directly report to William Bin Li, NIO's founder, chairman, and CEO, according to a local media outlet, citing sources familiar with the matter.

Headquartered in the U.S., WeWork is a commercial real estate company that provides flexible shared workspaces for technology startups and services for other enterprises.

The new business Mr. Ai will be responsible for in NIO is about a standalone low-/mid-end car brand, which targets the price range of 150,000 yuan ($23,250) to 250,000 yuan ($38,740), according to one of aforementioned sources.

Another source revealed that the position of SGMW's Hongguang MINIEV, priced around 30,000 yuan ($4,650), is also under William Bin Li's consideration for the mysterious brand.

According to the media channel, the new sub-brand will still adopt NIO's battery swapping technology, while build sales channels, user community, and App separate from the existing NIO brand. The vehicle development has reportedly started in Hefei.

“If everything goes well, the new sub-brand is expected for launch in the first half of next year,” said a person briefed on the plan.

Responding to a request for the local media channel, NIO declined to comment.