BYD has reached today 10 millionth NEV production milestone

BYD has reached the milestone of rolling out its 10 millionth new energy-vehicle (NEV) off the production line. The 10 millionth vehicle produced was the newly launched Denza Z9 

The chinese automaker announced that its 10 millionth NEV rolled off the assembly line today, a Z9 sedan officially launched by sub-brand Denza on November 15, the first day of the 2024 Guangzhou auto show. BYD delivered the vehicle to Feng Ji, the founder and CEO of Game Science, the producer of the hit Chinese video game “Black Myth: Wukong”. BYD, earlier this year, entered into a partnership with Game Science to become the exclusive automotive brand partner for the game. 

BYD chairman and president Wang Chuanfu (left) and Feng Ji, founder and CEO of Game Science

As part of the partnership, BYD and Game Science would work together to promote the scanning of China's cultural relics and monuments into digital assets to support future restoration efforts, according to an October 20 announcement from the NEV maker. BYD was founded in February 1995 in Shenzhen with just 20 employees and a starting capital of 2.5 million yuan (345,000 USD). Today, the company is the world’s largest manufacturer of NEVs and employs over 900,000 people worldwide and nearly 110,000 research and development staff. The company started out in the battery business and officially entered the automotive industry in 2003 with the acquisition of Qinchuan, located in Xi'an, Shaanxi province in northwest China. 

In 2004 BYD built its first car, the 316, but was quickly canceled due to low interest from dealers

In 2004, BYD built its first car, called the 316, but was quickly canceled due to low interest from dealers, BYD chairman and president Wang Chuanfu said at an event today. Its first self-developed production car, the BYD F3, launched in 2005, quickly gained consumer recognition and became the first Chinese model to sell over 10,000 units monthly. BYD debuted its first electric vehicle, the F3e, in 2008, officially entering the NEV market. The company initiated the development of plug-in hybrid technology in 2004 and launched the first-generation DM hybrid technology platform in 2008. In 2008, the BYD F3DM, equipped with the first-generation DM hybrid technology, rolled off the production line at its Xi'an manufacturing base, and was the world's first plug-in hybrid vehicle to be seen on the road. Four years ago, BYD's sales were still tiny, at less than 30,000 per month. Now, the company is selling more than 500,000 units per month. On May 19, 2021, BYD saw its one millionth NEV roll off the production line, making it the first Chinese automaker to reach that milestone in the NEV segment. With NEV sales growing rapidly, BYD ceased production and sales of vehicles powered entirely by internal combustion engines in March 2022, switching to a focus on producing PHEVs and BEVs. On November 16th 2022, almost exactly three years ago, BYD produced its 3 millionth NEV – the pure electric BYD Seal. On August 9 2023, BYD rolled out its 5 millionth NEV, setting an industry record. By September 2024, the company hit 9 million NEVs, becoming the first automaker globally to achieve this milestone. Today, BYD has reached 10 million NEVs produced in just two months. In the January-October period of this year, BYD's NEV sales amounted to 3.25 million units, up 36.49 percent year-on-year.