On May 22, Qichacha information unveiled the establishment of "Jiangsu HiPhi Motors Co., Ltd." with a registered capital of US$143.2665 million (approximately RMB 1.03 billion). Human Horizons holds a 30.2% stake, while EV Electra Ltd., a Lebanese startup specializing in electric vehicle manufacturing in the Middle East with approximately 300 employees, owns a controlling 69.8% stake.

Source: Qichacha

On EV Electra's official website, three HiPhi models are prominently featured, suggesting a collaborative relationship between the two companies and hinting at the revival of the previously "bankrupt" HiPhi Motors.

HiPhi Motors, operated by Human Horizons since 2017, initially targeted the high-end market. Its first model, the HiPhi X, launched in the company's third year, priced between RMB 570,000 and 800,000. The subsequent HiPhi Z model also failed to gain market traction, leading to disappointing sales figures. Cumulative sales in 2021 and 2022 amounted to 4,237 and 4,349 units, respectively, falling short of the 10,000-unit mark.

To boost sales, HiPhi introduced the more affordable HiPhi Y in July 2023, but this failed to reverse the downward trend. The lackluster sales performance led HiPhi to withhold its 2023 sales figures, paving the way for its eventual "implosion".

On February 18, 2024, the first working day of the new year, HiPhi Motors reportedly held an internal meeting announcing a six-month production halt. According to JieMian News, insiders revealed that salaries would be paid as usual until February 18, after which employees would receive only basic pay until March 15, when even that would be limited to the Shanghai minimum wage. Simultaneously, industry insiders disclosed that Human Horizons, the operating entity of HiPhi Motors, had been dissolved.

Multiple media outlets contacted HiPhi Motors executives, all of whom denied the production halt, claiming that operations were proceeding normally. However, the next afternoon, HiPhi issued a notice to employees announcing the suspension of daily operations for all subsidiaries and branches, effectively placing employees on suspended production.

This marked the official bankruptcy of HiPhi Motors. Despite rumors of restructuring, it wasn't until August 16, 2024, that HiPhi officially announced that Shanghai Yueda Zhixing Auto Service Co., Ltd., a wholly-owned subsidiary of Jiangsu Yueda Auto Group, had been authorized to procure HiPhi auto parts to support after-sales services, gradually restoring parts supply to HiPhi's after-sales centers and related outlets.

Since then, HiPhi Motors' official Weibo account has been releasing announcements related to the pre-reorganization case involving the merger of companies within the Human Horizons system. The most recent update, on January 7 of this year, announced the recruitment of investors for the common benefit debt of the pre-reorganization case involving 52 companies within the system.

The establishment of this new company may signify the "resurrection" of HiPhi Motors. However, the question remains: Can HiPhi, with its previously low sales, regain the trust of consumers?