According to the latest Q2 financial report released by Ideal Auto, its R&D investment reached 3 billion yuan in the second quarter of this year alone, accounting for 10% of the current revenue. This is already the third consecutive quarter of Ideal Auto, with research and development expenses exceeding 3 billion yuan, mainly invested in the field of intelligent driving. This is like a compass, demonstrating the determination and ambition of Ideal Automobile to continue leading the luxury new energy market.
The financial report also showed that Ideal Automobile's revenue in the second quarter reached 31.7 billion yuan, a new high for the same period, with a year-on-year increase of 10.6%, further widening the gap with other major new energy car companies.
On the operational level, Ideal Automobile achieved a adjusted net profit of 1.5 billion yuan in the second quarter, with a healthy gross profit margin of 19.5%, and has achieved profitability for seven consecutive quarters. In the current situation of intensified internal competition and many brands being forced to trade price for quantity, it must be said that such performance is very "ideal".
3 billion yuan R&D investment, intelligent driving achieves a qualitative leap
It is not difficult to find through the financial report that Ideal Automobile has continued its consistent "big investment" in research and development. Starting from the fourth quarter of 2023, the R&D investment has reached 3 billion yuan for three consecutive quarters, and the results have been evident since the third quarter of this year.
At the recently opened 2024 Chengdu Auto Show, Ideal Auto announced the latest progress of its new generation of Ideal Intelligent Driving technology based on end-to-end and VLM visual language models. This technology architecture is the industry's first and the first to be implemented in vehicles, leading the entire industry. In the one thousand person internal test in July, within less than a month, the total city NOA driving mileage of the thousand person group users reached 211000 kilometers, the longest daily city NOA driving mileage was 391 kilometers, and the longest single zero takeover city NOA mileage was 81.6 kilometers. On the same day, Ideal Auto also announced the official recruitment of a 10000 person experience group. The new generation of products will enter a new stage of supervised autonomous driving, and Ideal Auto's autonomous driving products are free for car owners.
According to the press conference, the accumulated training mileage of Ideal Automobile has exceeded 2.2 billion kilometers, and it is expected to exceed 3 billion kilometers by the end of 2024.
The end-to-end+VLM technology architecture is a watershed. Previously, we were still using traditional methods for autonomous driving, but starting from this generation, we are truly using artificial intelligence for autonomous driving, "said Lang Xianpeng, Vice President of Intelligent Driving Research and Development at Ideal Automotive.
In July of the same year, Ideal Auto officially launched its image free NOA, and at the auto show, Fan Haoyu, Senior Vice President of Ideal Auto's Product Department, said, "With the release of the image free NOA, the daily mileage of Ideal Auto's city NOA has increased by three times, and the daily activity of the city NOA has increased by eight times. The test drive rate of store NOA has doubled, and the sales proportion of AD Max models priced over 300000 yuan has reached 70%
In addition, Ideal Auto OTA 6.2 has officially been fully launched, adding heavyweight functions such as free parking space drawing, low-speed automatic emergency braking, opening Ideal Demonstration Hall, and non-stop parking lock at supercharging stations, continuously enhancing product value around intelligent driving, intelligent space, and intelligent electric.
For ordinary consumers, they may not pay attention to the underlying technological logic, but what they truly feel and care about is the user experience of the product and the value it brings. From the perspective of market performance, Ideal Automobile has continuously invested in research and development, truly achieving practical technology and user satisfaction.
In the fiercely competitive blue ocean of the new energy vehicle industry, the high R&D investment of Ideal Automobile is not an isolated case. However, in terms of specific numbers, the R&D investment in Ideal Automobile is still noteworthy. Taking other new energy vehicle companies as an example, although they continue to invest in technology research and development, in contrast, Ideal Automobile directly uses a larger proportion of its revenue for research and development, reflecting its more focused and resolute technology driven strategy.
Upgraded service experience, making car purchases more convenient
In addition to outstanding sales performance, Ideal Auto has also achieved continuous improvement in the operational efficiency of its direct sales network. This achievement not only reflects the company's optimization and refined management in sales channels, but also lays a solid foundation for the company's long-term development. As of August 2024, the number of retail centers for Ideal Automobile has continued to grow nationwide, covering numerous cities and located in popular commercial districts. Business hours are synchronized with shopping malls, providing consumers with convenient car viewing and test driving experiences. These retail centers not only showcase products, but also have a team of professional product experts to provide consumers with detailed product introductions and car purchase consultations. In addition, Ideal Auto also provides a convenient car buying experience through online channels such as official websites, apps, and mini programs. Consumers can view vehicle configurations, interact with real car owners, and more. The online car buying process is simple and clear, and consumers can enjoy one-stop car buying services, making the car buying experience more relaxed and enjoyable.
In addition, Ideal Automobile has also made significant progress in the construction of charging networks. The company has the largest number of self built high-speed supercharging stations by car companies. As of August 31, 2024, Ideal Auto has 481 retail centers nationwide, covering 145 cities; There are 423 after-sales maintenance centers and authorized sheet metal spraying centers, covering 220 cities. Ideal Auto has put into use 748 Ideal Supercharging stations nationwide, with 3506 charging stations.
Adhere to long-term principles, multiple car models sell well in the market
In the increasingly competitive environment of the automotive market, major car companies frequently adopt price reduction and promotion strategies in order to compete for market share, resulting in a decline in the overall profit margin of the industry. Long term price wars and frequent product iterations have seriously weakened the image of major brands and consumer loyalty. Ideal Automobile, on the other hand, adheres to a long-term approach by continuously investing in research and development in cutting-edge technologies such as intelligent networking, autonomous driving, and AI big models, achieving breakthroughs and enhancing product competitiveness.
After fully promoting intelligent driving, all models of Ideal Automobile maintain strong sales momentum. In terms of sales, Ideal Automobile delivered a total of 108581 new cars in the second quarter, a year-on-year increase of 25.5%. Its market share in the new energy vehicle market of over 200000 yuan ranks first among Chinese brands, significantly ahead of several other leading new energy vehicle companies.
On September 1, 2024, Ideal Auto announced delivery data for August 2024. In August 2024, Ideal Auto delivered 48122 new cars, a year-on-year increase of 37.8%. A total of 288103 vehicles were delivered from January to August 2024. As of August 31, 2024, Ideal Automobile has delivered a total of 921467 vehicles. With outstanding product strength, Ideal Automobile firmly occupies the top spot in the sales of luxury new energy vehicles in the Chinese market, and remains at the top of the sales list for SUVs priced at 200000 yuan.
As a new member of the Ideal family, Ideal L6 has also delivered a satisfactory answer after rigorous market testing. In the price range of 249800 yuan to 279800 yuan, the Ideal L6 is widely favored by young users, with a delivery volume exceeding 20000 units for three consecutive months, further increasing the brand's market share. In the new energy vehicle market of over 200000 yuan, Ideal Automobile achieved a market share of 18% in July, becoming the sales champion of new energy vehicle brands. In August, it continued its strong momentum and won the sales champion of Chinese new energy vehicle brands.
In the market of over 300000 yuan, the 2024 Ideal L7, Ideal L8, and Ideal L9, whose product strength has also been revitalized and upgraded, fully released sales momentum in the second quarter, helping Ideal further consolidate its market position as the preferred luxury brand for families. In the second quarter, the Ideal L7 and Ideal L8 dominated the sales of mid to large new energy SUVs with a total sales volume of over 300000 yuan, while the Ideal L9 remains one of the top choices for users in the large SUV market. The continuous hot sales of the Ideal L series further consolidate Ideal's leading position in the luxury new energy market.
Thanks to Ideal Auto's insistence on self-developed core technologies and long-term high R&D investment, Ideal Auto focuses on creating and delivering value to household users. In its Q2 financial report, Ideal Auto demonstrated strong market performance, continuously improving operational efficiency, steadily growing revenue and profitability, and rapidly expanding charging network. These achievements not only prove Ideal Automobile's leading position in the luxury new energy vehicle market, but also lay a solid foundation for its future development, and create an excellent model for the development of new energy vehicles in China.