A Nio staff member and an employee of a partner company were killed in the accident, the Chinese electric car maker said in a statement on Thursday. Both were inside the test vehicle that crashed Wednesday afternoon at the Shanghai Innovation Park, Nio (NIO) said in a post on Weibo. The company is headquartered in the industrial park.
He added that “according to the analysis of the situation on the ground, we can confirm in advance that this is an accident (not for reasons related to the vehicle).”
Nio also said he was cooperating in a police investigation into the causes of the incident.
The company did not respond to a request for further comment from CNN Business.
Nio’s statement about the crash attracted at least 78 million views on Weibo and more than 1,700 discussion posts. Videos that are being distributed online show rescuers in orange suits trying to rescue passengers in a car that looks badly damaged.
Founded by Chinese entrepreneur William Li in 2014, Nio has become one of the fastest growing electric car startups in China and one of Elon Musk’s several local Tesla rivals.
Last year, it delivered 91,429 vehicles, up 109% from 2020, according to the company. For the first five months of this year, it delivered 37,866 units, which is 12% more than the same period a year ago.
Tesla was the best-selling pure electric car in China until April, when Covid’s blockade in Shanghai affected its sales and supply chains. China’s BYD (BYDDF), backed by Warren Buffett, overtook Tesla this month.
Nio listed its shares on the New York Stock Exchange in 2018.
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