This Far East EV Giant Sees Robots Ascending – and Sooner Than You May Think

Only three short years to a massive AI, robot workforce?

Companies looking to automate their workforce may find solace in a prediction from China electronic vehicle maker NIO, with a company senior executive stating artificial intelligence and robotics will comprise 30% of its global workforce.

First reported by the South China Morning Post, the prediction comes at a time when Nio is slashing 30% of its workforce with a long-term plan to fully automate using advanced artificial intelligence and robotics.

The shift to full automation won’t only impact the company’s rank-and-file workers, it will also impact senior executives. Nio reportedly plans to cut management positions by 50%

“We want to resort to AI technologies to largely reduce reliance on skilled workers and technicians, and hence save more labor costs,” said Ji Huaqiang, Nio vice-president of manufacturing, logistics, and operations, on November 24 “If 80 percent of our manufacturing decisions can be made by AI, it will enable us to reduce 50 percent of our managerial positions in 2025.”

A Combative Market

Nio, which plans to enter the U.S. lucrative automotive market by 2025, says it’s losing market share in China as the region’s expanding auto manufacturing market now holds 200 companies, signaling major “over capacity,” Nio notes.

The automaker hasn’t generated a profit since it rolled out in 2014 and its future ability to do so may well depend on a “labor-free” workforce that’s highly dependent on advanced AI to produce vehicles at a profit over the next few years.

The EV maker does have two major manufacturing plants that combine to produce 450,000 new vehicles per shift, with an average human workforce of 1,000 employees per shift.

Already, 756 robots are being used to “achieve 100% automation” at Nio’s second plant in Hefei, China, SCMP reports.

Expect Nio to lean into advanced AI and robotics even more as it looks to boost manufacturing output to gain market share.

“Nio already has a big production capacity and its manufacturing technique is advanced enough to support high growth,” said Chen Jinzhu, CEO of Shanghai Mingliang Auto Service, a manufacturing consulting company. “The company needs to design and produce more vehicles that can appeal to more Chinese drivers to bolster sales.”

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