William Li Fulfills Promise: NIO Achieves First Ever Quarterly Profit in Q4 2025

NIO (Weilai 蔚来) just did something that seemed impossible a year ago—they turned a profit.

On February 5, 2026, the Chinese EV maker announced their Q4 2025 earnings preview, and the numbers are genuinely impressive for a company that’s been burning through cash since day one.

The Moment Everyone’s Been Waiting For

NIO expects to record an adjusted operating profit (Non-GAAP, excluding share-based compensation expenses) ranging from ¥700 million RMB ($97.2 million USD) to ¥1.2 billion RMB ($166.7 million USD) for Q4 2025.

Let that sink in for a second.

This is the first time NIO has achieved adjusted operating profitability in a single quarter since the company was founded.

Back in March 2025, NIO founder William Li (Li Bin 李斌) made a bold public commitment: achieve profitability by the fourth quarter of that same year.

He just delivered on that promise.

From Bloodbath to Black Ink: The Dramatic Turnaround

The contrast here tells the real story.

Just one year earlier in Q4 2024, NIO was hemorrhaging money—recording an adjusted operating loss of ¥5.5436 billion RMB ($770.1 million USD).

Now they’re posting quarterly profits.

That’s not just a swing in the right direction—that’s a full 180-degree turnaround in a single year.

And here’s why this matters: the EV market in China has been brutal.

Every startup in the space has been locked in price wars, burning capital on R&D, and racing to scale.

Most analysts thought NIO would either get acquired, diluted into oblivion, or pivot their entire business model.

Instead, they proved that profitability is possible—even in one of the most competitive automotive markets on the planet.

Following the profit announcement, NIO’s share prices across the US, Hong Kong, and Singapore markets saw varying degrees of gains.

How NIO Actually Did It: The Three-Part Playbook

This wasn’t luck or accounting tricks.

NIO’s turnaround came from three synchronized operational moves:

• Volume growth that actually moved the needle
• Better product mix with higher-margin vehicles
• Aggressive cost reduction without sacrificing quality

Let’s break down each one.

Part 1: Delivery Numbers That Speak for Themselves

In Q4 2025, NIO delivered a record-breaking 124,807 vehicles, representing a 71.7% year-over-year increase.

That’s scale.

But here’s where it gets interesting—the growth wasn’t just coming from one brand or product line.

NIO’s diversified portfolio is actually working:

• NIO (Weilai 蔚来) brand: 67,433 units (up 27.8% YoY)
• ONVO (Ledao 乐道) brand: 38,290 units (up 92.1% YoY)
• Firefly (Yinghuochong 萤火虫) brand: 19,084 units (up 52.8% month-over-month)

Translation: they’re winning across different market segments and price points.

This matters because it means NIO isn’t dependent on a single product or buyer demographic—they’ve built a portfolio strategy that actually resonates with the market.

Part 2: Higher Margins on the Models That Matter

Volume is great, but margin is everything.

NIO CFO Stanley Qu (Qu Yu 曲玉) revealed during the Q3 2025 earnings call that the company’s margin strategy is working:

• NIO ES8: achieved a 20% gross margin
• “5566” series and ONVO L90: maintained margins between 15% and 20%
• Key insight: High-margin models now account for more than half of the company’s annual sales

This is a crucial metric because it shows NIO isn’t chasing sales at any cost.

They’re actually being selective about which vehicles they produce and pushing customers toward products that deliver better profitability.

A sales representative for ONVO in Fengtai, Beijing, gave us some real insight into what’s driving this demand:

“From the front lines, the demand for the L60 and L90 is palpable. The L60 has become a must-see for families looking at EVs in the ¥200,000 RMB ($27,800 USD) to ¥250,000 RMB ($34,700 USD) range. The convenience of the battery swapping network and the intelligent driving systems provide value that customers feel is worth the price.”

That last part is critical: customers feel the value justifies the price.

NIO isn’t winning on price—they’re winning on differentiation.

Part 3: Cost Efficiency Without the Corners Cut

• Self-Developed Chips: Replacing Nvidia Orin-X with NX9031 chip (Savings: ¥10,000 per vehicle)
• Platform Synergy: High parts commonality across NT3.0 models
• Material Engineering: Optimized body architecture and reduction in expensive aluminum alloys
• Process Innovation: Implementation of the Basic Operating Unit mechanism for capital efficiency

Here’s where William Li’s operational vision becomes clear.

In March 2025, he implemented a “Basic Operating Unit” mechanism that fundamentally restructured how NIO operates.

The concept is simple but powerful: break down operations into independent units with clear input-output ratios to eliminate wasteful spending.

On the technical side, the cost reductions were equally aggressive:

• Chip replacement: Swapped out four Nvidia (Yingweida 英伟达) Orin-X chips for their self-developed NX9031 intelligent driving chip, reducing per-vehicle costs by approximately ¥10,000 RMB ($1,390 USD)
• Parts commonality: Increased parts sharing on the NT3.0 platform to reduce redundancy and manufacturing complexity
• Material optimization: Reduced aluminum content in vehicle bodies to lower the Bill of Materials (BoM) costs

The result?

By Q3 2025, NIO’s vehicle gross margin had risen to 14.7%, a 4.4 percentage point increase over the previous quarter.

And per-vehicle costs dropped to ¥188,000 RMB ($26,100 USD).

That’s the kind of operational efficiency that leads to sustained profitability—not just a one-time accounting adjustment.

Why This Matters Beyond the Balance Sheet

NIO’s first quarterly profit represents something bigger than a financial milestone.

It’s a fundamental shift in how the market thinks about Chinese EV startups.

For years, NIO faced relentless pressure from investors and analysts questioning whether the company could ever become profitable.

The company had poured billions into R&D and built out a proprietary battery-swapping infrastructure—investments that looked reckless during the price-war phase of the EV market.

But those “wasteful” investments actually created differentiation.

Automotive industry analyst Zhou Yue summed it up perfectly:

“NIO’s breakthrough proves NEV companies do not have to rely solely on ‘price cuts for expansion’ to survive. By optimizing product structures and controlling costs while offering differentiated services like battery swapping, companies can find a sustainable path to profitability.”

Translation: there’s a playbook that works, and it doesn’t involve racing to the bottom on price.

The Balance Sheet: Stability Building

Let’s be real—NIO still carries significant financial obligations.

As of Q3 2025, NIO’s financial position looks like this:

• Total assets: ¥112.044 billion RMB ($15.56 billion USD)
• Total liabilities: ¥99.956 billion RMB ($13.88 billion USD)

The debt load is real and substantial.

But here’s what matters: the company is now generating operating profit.

That profitability provides the financial cushion needed for future technological innovation and international expansion without requiring constant capital infusions from investors.

It’s the difference between a company that’s on a path to sustainability and one that’s betting everything on the next funding round.

The Bigger Picture: What This Means for Chinese EV Startups

NIO’s achievement is a wake-up call for the entire NEV (New Energy Vehicle) market.

The brutal price wars and margin compression that defined 2023-2024 don’t have to be permanent features of the industry.

Companies that invested heavily in differentiated technology, built out infrastructure advantages, and maintained product quality can actually turn the corner into profitability.

The playbook NIO executed—combining volume growth with smart product mix optimization and ruthless cost management—is replicable.

It requires discipline, but it works.

That’s exactly why NIO’s Q4 2025 profit achievement matters so much for the future of the Chinese EV industry.

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References

• Li Bin Fulfills Promise, NIO Achieves First Profit in Q4 2025 – China Times (Huaxia Shibao)
• Investor Relations – NIO
• Official Website – ONVO (Ledao)