Changan Automobile, CATL, and Huawei—this trio of automotive heavyweights is jointly steering Avatr towards a listing on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange.

However, despite being born with a 'silver spoon,' Avatr has yet to deliver results that match its illustrious pedigree. It lags far behind the market leaders in both sales volume and brand recognition.

As competition intensifies in China's New Energy Vehicle (NEV) market, the second half of the race will increasingly test internal capabilities and endurance. For Avatr to survive and join the 'million-unit club,' it needs not only sustained, strong support from its 'dream team' but also access to a financing platform for long-term capital support.

Born with a Silver Spoon

Behind Avatr stands a top-tier 'dream team' of auto manufacturing. It is a luxury NEV passenger vehicle brand created through the collaboration of Changan Automobile, CATL, and Huawei.

The trio operates with 'one team, one goal, and one strategy,' each leveraging its unique strengths.

Changan Automobile, one of China's four major automotive groups, boasts a history spanning over 160 years and more than 40 years of automotive manufacturing experience. It has established three brands—Changan, Shenlan, and Avatr—and has achieved notable success in building its proprietary brands. Avatr shoulders the mission of propelling Changan Automobile towards high-end breakthroughs in the NEV era.

As the majority shareholder, Changan Automobile empowers Avatr with its strengths in intelligent manufacturing, supply chain systems, R&D and testing capabilities, and channel resources.

CATL, the world's largest energy storage battery manufacturer, holds absolute sway in the NEV battery market. As a significant shareholder, it fully supports Avatr in terms of NEV technology platforms and joint marketing efforts.

Huawei, while not directly holding shares in Avatr, provides the industry's top-tier intelligent automotive solutions through its HI mode.

Under the collective support of these 'three giants,' Avatr adopts an asset-light operational model, giving it inherent operational advantages compared to other NEV peers.

As of the end of June this year, the company employed 3,666 people, with over 57.1% engaged in technical and R&D roles. In less than five years since its brand launch, it has accumulated 1,326 patents globally, including several related to cutting-edge NEV technologies, maintaining a leading position in patent application efficiency within the industry.

Founded in July 2018, Avatr launched its first mass-produced flagship model, the Avatr 11, in August 2022, making its formal debut in China's NEV market. Subsequently, it introduced models such as the Avatr 12, 07, and 06 in November 2023, September 2024, and April 2025, respectively. All models offer both pure electric and extended-range powertrain options, covering the price range of RMB 200,000 to RMB 700,000.

What many may not know is that Avatr was initially co-founded by Changan Automobile and NIO, with each contributing RMB 49 million. Subsequently, through equity transfers and financing rounds, NIO's stake in Avatr gradually decreased. This September, NIO fully exited by transferring its remaining stake in Avatr for RMB 117 million.

Lacking a Blockbuster Model

Throughout its development, Avatr has received robust support from various capital sources. From March 2022 to June 2025, it completed strategic to Series C financing rounds, during which Changan Automobile made multiple capital increases, raising approximately RMB 16.4 billion from the primary market.

Based on the price at which Huzhou Chuangsheng Chiming transferred its 0.24% stake in Avatr in November this year, the company's latest valuation stands at approximately RMB 26 billion.

Prior to its IPO, Changan Automobile is Avatr's largest shareholder, holding a 40.99% stake; CATL is the second-largest shareholder with a 9.17% stake; Chongqing Anyu, backed by Chongqing's state-owned assets, is the third-largest shareholder with an 8.81% stake. Additionally, Avatr's shareholder base includes Cheng'an Private Equity, Southern Industrial Asset Management, Bank of Communications Investments, and the Green Fund, all with state-owned backgrounds.

Avatr's operations are primarily led by Changan Automobile, with its core management team mostly hailing from Changan.

Chairman Wang Hui, aged 44 this year, is a 'veteran of Changan' with 22 years of service. In September 2022, he was appointed Vice President of Changan Automobile. This September, he succeeded Zhu Huarong, Chairman of Changan Automobile, as Chairman and Non-Executive Director of Avatr.

Chen Zhuo, aged 41, serves as Executive Director and President, overseeing the company's overall daily operations. He joined Changan Automobile in 2006, holding positions such as General Manager of the Public Relations Department and Spokesperson. He joined Avatr in February 2023.

Nader Faghihzadeh, Executive Vice President and Chief Design Officer, is responsible for Avatr's product design, strategy, and brand promotion. He worked at BMW for nearly 20 years, last serving as Creative Director, primarily designing the BMW iNext Vision project, luxury vehicles, segment-specific vehicles, and automotive interiors and exteriors. He joined Avatr in March 2019.

Despite Avatr's strong background and the 'futuristic' design of its multiple product offerings, it still lags far behind leading NEV startups in terms of market acceptance and brand recognition.

In 2023 and 2024, its product sales reached 20,000 and 61,600 units, respectively, with 56,700 units sold in the first half of this year, representing a year-on-year increase of over 150%.

Since March this year, Avatr has achieved monthly sales exceeding 10,000 units for eight consecutive months, with October sales reaching a record high of 13,500 units. However, this figure still pales in comparison to other leading NEV contenders, lacking a blockbuster model to drive brand recognition and sales volume.

In the first ten months of this year, Avatr's cumulative sales reached 104,200 units, achieving only 47.4% of its annual sales target of 220,000 units.

From a model sales perspective, the Avatr 07 is currently its best-selling model, while sales of other models remain generally low. In the first half of this year, the monthly average sales of the Avatr 11 and 12 were approximately 758 and 1,673 units, respectively, both experiencing varying degrees of decline compared to the previous year.

Deepening Ties with Huawei

As product sales climb, Avatr's revenue has also grown rapidly.

The prospectus shows that from 2022 to 2024 and the first half of 2025, the company's operating income was RMB 28 million, RMB 5.645 billion, RMB 15.195 billion, and RMB 12.208 billion, respectively. Net profits for the same periods were -RMB 2.015 billion, -RMB 3.693 billion, -RMB 4.018 billion, and -RMB 1.585 billion, respectively, with a cumulative loss of approximately RMB 11.3 billion during the reporting period. It is expected to continue incurring losses throughout 2025.

However, the prospectus also reveals a trend of gradual improvement in the company's operating conditions. In 2024, the gross profit margin turned positive at 6.3%, further increasing to 10.1% in the first half of this year. The net loss margin also decreased from 65.4% in 2023 to 13.0% in the first half of this year.

To gain an edge in market competition, Avatr must deepen its collaboration with Huawei.

In October this year, Avatr invested RMB 11.5 billion to acquire a 10% stake in Shenzhen Yinwang, a Huawei subsidiary, establishing a capital link between the two companies.

At the Guangzhou Auto Show in November, Avatr and Huawei announced a comprehensive deepening of their strategic cooperation. Both parties jointly promoted the upgrading of the HI mode to the HI PLUS mode, expanding their collaboration to encompass user insights, product definition, product development, integrated marketing, team building, and other areas.

Jin Yuzhi, CEO of Huawei's Intelligent Automotive Solutions BU, stated that as the only brand in Huawei's Qiankun series with mass-produced models, Avatr's product refresh cycles are highly synchronized with the iteration cycles of Huawei's Qiankun ADS assisted driving system. In the future, Huawei's latest technologies, including the Qiankun Intelligent Driving ADS Highway L3 Solution and the MoLA-enabled Hongmeng Cockpit L3 with human-like intelligence, will be mass-produced in Avatr models. It is expected that by 2030, Avatr and Huawei will jointly launch 17 products, covering segments such as sedans, SUVs, and MPVs.

According to the plan, Avatr Technology aims to achieve global sales of 400,000 units and annual revenue of RMB 100 billion by 2027. Its goals for 2030 and 2035 are global sales of 800,000 units and 1.5 million units, respectively.

Given the current competitive environment and brand market performance, Avatr faces significant challenges in achieving these ambitious goals.