This Car Was Not a Joke, Its Manufacturer JiYue Was!

Having two major Chinese industrial groups as shareholders is by no means an absolute guarantee. Proof by JiYue.

We introduced you a month ago to the JiYue ROBO X EV, an incredible autonomous hypercar with a carbon shell equipped with four liquid-cooled motors capable of accelerating from 0 to 100 km/h in less than 1.9 seconds. We stated then that it was no joke despite, admittedly, a picture too idyllic that should have raised suspicion. Why this optimism? Simply because the two main shareholders of JiYue were none other than BAIDU, China’s leading provider of mapping for autonomous vehicles, and Geely, owner of Lynk & Co, Zeekr, Smart, Polestar, or Volvo! Honestly, with such a pedigree, how could we doubt?

Well, we were wrong!!! According to our colleagues at CarNewsChina, JiYue’s activities were halted just days after rumors circulated that the company was in trouble. So how could a brand that was not supposed to fail end up in such a situation and… who will be next?

Unfortunately, it seems that JiYue’s CFO has disappeared along with the company’s books, which is quite disheartening. Add to that the fact that his family has also vanished with him, and that his IP address was traced back to Singapore, and you have all the ingredients for a good financial scandal.

CarNewsChina reports that Baidu conducted a financial investigation in October 2024 before investing 412 million dollars and that during this process they discovered a financial hole of nearly one billion dollars, effectively blocking all planned investments for the manufacturer’s development. Too bad, we believed in it, but shameful and confusing, we swear, but a little late, that we won’t be fooled again.