App shutdown and website disappearance signal potential demise for the once-promising automaker founded by tech entrepreneur Li Yinan
The electric vehicle startup arena continues its ruthless shakeout, with Niutron Automotive becoming the latest casualty. Users recently discovered the company's official app has ceased functioning, its website displays server errors, and its Weibo account has been wiped clean—ominous signs for the brand once hailed as China's next great EV hope.
Digital Blackout: The Final Signs of Failure
Niutron's digital disappearance marks a stark reversal for the company founded by Li Yinan, the former Huawei executive who later created e-scooter maker Niu Technologies. Originally named Niutron Energy before rebranding as Mars Technology, the company launched its first model—the NV SUV—in October 2022 with promised December deliveries that never materialized.
The death knell came via an unusual December 7, 2022 letter from manufacturing partner Dacheng Auto—not Niutron itself—announcing the NV's undeliverable status due to unspecified "internal reasons." The apology offered full refunds plus a scale model and coffee gift cards, but couldn't mask the production crisis.
Manufacturing Quagmire: The Dacheng Dilemma
Niutron's troubles stem largely from its partnership with troubled contract manufacturer Dacheng Auto. Without its own production license, Niutron relied on Dacheng—a company plagued by 2019 production halts and massive debts. China's industrial policy requires idled manufacturers to pass rigorous reactivation inspections, creating a regulatory minefield for Niutron's revival hopes.
Industry analysts note that choosing Dacheng represented a calculated risk when alternative contract manufacturers like NIO's Jianghuai partnership model showed greater promise. The decision now appears to have been Niutron's undoing.
The Founder's Curse: Li Yinan's Third Strike
Niutron marked Li Yinan's third entrepreneurial venture following his storied rise and fall at Huawei, where he became vice president at 26 before a tumultuous departure. His subsequent ventures—networking firm Harbour Networks (acquired by Huawei) and e-scooter company Niu Technologies—followed a pattern of initial promise giving way to operational challenges.
Li's 2015 declaration to build "China's greatest electric vehicle" with Niu ultimately fell short of its ambitions. Now Niutron's collapse casts further doubt on his ability to translate technical vision into manufacturing reality.
Industry Darwinism: Survival of the Funded
Niutron's failure reflects broader pressures in China's hyper-competitive EV market, where cash-burning startups face off against deep-pocketed traditional automakers and Tesla's expanding dominance. Unlike sector leaders NIO and Li Auto that secured billions in funding, Niutron couldn't overcome the capital-intensive hurdles of vehicle production.
The disappearance serves as a cautionary tale for China's remaining EV startups: technological ambition must be matched by manufacturing competence and financial endurance. As the industry's consolidation accelerates, Niutron likely won't be the last aspirant to vanish from the digital landscape.