NIO Day 2023 promises a new flagship EV model, could it be the ultra-luxe ET9?
We currently sit three weeks away from NIO Day 2023, the annual event held by one of China’s leading EV automakers that caps off the year with new and exciting technologies to come. We know NIO intends to unveil a new flagship model during the event and it’s rumored to be the automaker’s top-of-the-line sedan, possibly named the ET9. Here’s what we know.
NIO Day is an event we look forward to toward the end of each year, as it never fails to showcase new EV models and adjacent technologies. Due to the Pandemic, NIO Day 2020 was actually held in January of 2021, when the automaker unveiled its flagship sedan, the ET7.
NIO Day 2021 came as scheduled later that year and included the debut of the ET5 sedan, as well as plans to expand to new markets around the globe by 2025, including the US. Those plans for North America have wavered a bit recently, but NIO Day continues to deliver.
2022’s event included unveilings of NIO’s ES8 and EC7 SUVs, pushing the automaker’s lineup to eight available EVs. Later this month at NIO Day 2023, we know that EV family will grow by at least one – but what model we see unveiled remains somewhat of a mystery.
NIO Day 2023 takes place December 23
According to an announcement from cofounder and CEO William Li on its mobile app this week, NIO Day 2023 will take place on December 23 at the Xi’an Olympic Sports Center located in the Shaanxi Province of northwest China.
Li also revealed that NIO intends to unveil a new flagship EV model during the event, sparking a blaze of speculation about what the public can expect. NIO’s model nomenclature consists of a letter and a number – the higher the number, the more premium the EV.
The company’s current lineup consists of five SUVs and three sedans, the most premium being the aforementioned ES8 SUV. However, there have been rumors swirling for over a year that NIO has been developing an ultra-luxury sedan to compete with the likes of the Mercedes-Maybach S-Class.
Per a report from CnEVPost, Edison Yu’s team of analysts at Deutsche Bank believe that luxe sedan is in fact on the agenda for NIO Day 2023, and it will be called the ET9. Per a research from Edison Yu sent to investors:
Then at the end of Dec, the company will unveil its new flagship vehicle at NIO Day featuring the latest technologies. Our guess is this could be an ultra high-end sedan ‘ET9’ that would be comparable with Maybach.
The team also said the new top-tier sedan will be produced in low volume and exist as a halo EV to add to the prowess of the growing brand. When speaking to this NIO Day 2023 debut, whatever model it may end up being, William Li relayed the EV will feature the company’s latest tech and will “become the global technology benchmark for smart EVs.”
There’s a genuine chance Deutsche Bank is incorrect and NIO’s next sedan is called the ET8 to match its SUV counterpart, but we’d expect the model to be called either the 8 or the 9. Either way, it is reportedly expected to cost over CNY 1 million ($141,500).
Regardless of the name, we are sure to see a new EV model come out of NIO Day 2023. We will be tuning and will be sure to report back as we learn more. Check back soon.
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James Murdoch, a Tesla board member and friend of CEO Elon Musk, has confirmed that he sold about $13 million in stock today as the stock (TSLA) crashed.
There has been a lot of insider trading at Tesla lately, and by trading, we mean selling – cause no insider is ever buying at Tesla.
We recently reported on Kimball Musk, Elon’s brother, and Tesla’s Chief Financial Officer Taneja Vaibhav recently selling ahead of a recent drop in the company’s stock price.
Tesla’s chairwoman, Robyn Denholm, also sold $33 million worth of Tesla shares last week and over $100 million in the last 3 months.
Now, it’s James Murdoch’s turn. The Tesla board member just confirmed, through a required SEC filing, that he sold 54,776 Tesla shares for just over $13 million today:
He sold as Tesla’s stock crashed 15% today. It is now down more than 50% from its all-time high just a few months ago.
Murdoch was appointed to Tesla’s board in 2017.
He is better known as the son of media mogul Rupert Murdoch and the former CEO of 21st Century Fox from 2015 to 2019.
Murdoch was one of the Tesla board directors who was forced to return almost $1 billion in cash and stock options to Tesla as part of a settlement for over-compensation.
Electrek’s Take
Tesla insiders are unloading, and those are just the ones we know about. Public companies only have to report insider trading for board directors and listed top executives.
For the latter, Tesla purposefully only lists 3 people: Elon, Vaibhav Taneja, Tesla’s CFO, and Tom Zhu, whose role at Tesla has bit quite fluid in recent years.
Therefore, we don’t know about the dozens of other top executives potentially selling their shares right now amid a giant correction.
It’s really suspicious because there are clear top leaders at Tesla who are often on Tesla’s earnings calls, and they are not even listed, like Lars Moravy, for example.
But it’s par for the course at Tesla, which has some of the worst corporate governance I have ever seen. It’s truly shameful.
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Environment
Mercedes’ new electric people mover is coming soon: Here’s a sneak peek at the luxe EV van
The next generation of Mercedes-Benz luxury vans is almost here. Mercedes’ first luxury electric van, based on its new VAN.EA platform, is now in Arjeplog, Sweden, for winter testing. The new platform will serve as the base for upcoming VIP private vans, high-end limousines, luxury all-arounders, and much more.
What we know about Mercedes’ new luxury electric van
Mercedes is already a leading van maker, both for business and private use. Starting next year, all electric Mercedes’ vans will launch on its new Van Electric Architecture (VAN.EA).
After unveiling the platform almost two years ago, Mathias Geisen, Head of Mercedes-Benz Vans, said “VAN.EA clearly underscores our aspiration to ‘Lead in Electric.” He explained that the purpose-built EV architecture supports both mid and large vans.
With a modular design, Mercedes can easily swap out sections to create a different design. The platform consists of three blocks, or modules.
The first block has the electric powertrain while the middle module determines the van’s dimensions. At the rear, the final module can add another electric motor, giving it AWD capabilities.
With 4MATIC AWD, Mercedes claims the new architecture significantly expands driving range and ensures the vans “meet the highest standards regardless of weather conditions.”
Although final specs will be revealed closer to launch, the electric vans will be based on an 800V platform, suggesting relatively fast charging speeds.
The luxury vans will also be loaded with Mercedes’ new operating system (MB.OS), it’s powerful new in-vehicle software that powers all functions like infotainment, autonomous driving, and more.
After the electric van began testing on public roads late last year, Mercedes said it was headed to Sweden for winter testing before its official debut next year.
Mercedes plans to launch several versions for private and business use. The VAN.EA-P is designed for those looking for a mobile office, family activity vehicle, etc., while the VAN.EA-C is for commercial use, such as courier, express, and parcel delivery vehicles. It can even support larger vehicles like campers or RVs.
Mercedes aims for 20% of van sales to be electric by the end of next year. By 2030, the luxury brand wants half of all van sales to be EV.
Source: Mercedes-Benz
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Environment
BlackRock’s Fink says Trump deportations will have severe impact on agriculture, construction
HOUSTON — BlackRock CEO Larry Fink said Monday that President Donald Trump‘s deportation policy will have a severe impact on the agriculture and construction sectors, which could lead to elevated inflation in the near term.
“I think that over the next six to nine months, we’re going to see a little more elevated inflation,” Fink said the CERAWeek by S&P Global energy conference. “I do believe deportations and the speed at which it is happening is going to have severe impacts on the agricultural sector and the construction sector.”
Fink said CEOs in the agriculture sector have told him that about 70% of the men and women who work in the industry were not born in the U.S. This raises the question of whether the U.S. will have enough labor to harvest the crops when spring arrives, Fink said.
“With the whole idea that we’re going to have to use private capital to build out this economy — are we going to have enough workers,” Fink asked. “I’ve even told members of the Trump team that we’re going to run out of electricians as we build out AI data centers — we just don’t have enough,” the CEO said.
This potential labor shortage will contribute to inflation, Fink said. Over the longer term, however, the U.S. could see “big deflation because of the advancement of AI and robots and how that’s going to reshape the economy,” the CEO said.
The deflationary pressure that the U.S. experienced over the past two decades was due in part to the importation of cheaper goods from overseas though this hurt U.S. workers, Fink said. The shift to rising nationalism around the world will have an impact on prices, he said.
“When I go to Washington, they talk about these policies,” Fink said. “I ask at what cost are you willing to tolerate that. “Yes, we may have opportunities to create better and more robust jobs, but then the offside of that will be, it will probably create a little more elevated inflation in the short run.”
Trump’s deportation policy is occurring at the same time the president is imposing tariffs on major U.S. trade partners. The president has slapped 20% tariffs on China. He has paused tariffs on Mexican and Canadian goods that are compliant with the deal that governs trade in North America. But Trump is threatening what he calls “reciprocal tariffs” in April.
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