Recently, a series of “spy shots” showcasing the interior of the AITO M9 have grabbed attention. From the materials used, one can see that the car uses large wooden decorative panels on the top part of the glove box and door panels. The rest of the interior is mainly wrapped in leather.
From a feature layout perspective, the AITO M9 uses the tri-screen design, which is becoming more common in new energy vehicles. This consists of the dashboard, central control, and the co-driver entertainment screen lined up in a row. It also boasts a large HUD. As for other details, the new vehicle is equipped with button-style door handles, rotary-style window control buttons, and a spherical device on top of the central control, likely for interaction with HUAWEI SOUNDS.
Regarding this AITO M9 interior reveal, one netizen remarked, “It feels so upscale.” Another commented, “I may be getting older, but this feels too old-fashioned.” “Is this the best car under 10 million RMB?”
As the flagship SUV of the AITO brand, the M9 has already started production in the third Sailes intelligent plant and is expected to officially launch in December. The current pre-sale price is set between 500,000 to 600,000 yuan. Yu Chengdong, a senior executive of Huawei, once said the M9 would “redefine the best smart SUV under 10 million RMB.”
According to the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology’s directory of new energy vehicles exempted from purchase tax (70th batch), the AITO M9 will be available in pure electric and extended-range models. The M9 EV model will have at least one version with a 630km range, while the extended-range model will have a 175km electric range and come with a 1.5L turbocharged range extender, consuming 6.9 liters per 100km.
Yu Chengdong revealed that since the blind booking began on September 25, the AITO M9, with just a few renderings and some configuration details, received a large number of orders. As of October 7, there were 10,450 orders with 8,040 retained; 333 orders were placed on that day, with 26 cancellations, netting 307 orders.
Much of the interest in the AITO M9 stems from the success of the AITO M7. Based on official data, since its release on September 12, the new M7 witnessed rapid growth in bookings: surpassing 2,000 units on September 16, 2,700 units on the 17th, and breaking through 7,000 units on October 6, receiving 50,000 orders in just 25 days.
Regarding the surge in M7 orders, Yu Chengdong described it as a “resurrection; truly not easy.” Meanwhile, a Sailes executive said in an interview, “It feels like we’ve finally made it through.”
“To meet the demand for 50,000 vehicles, the Sailes smart factory is ramping up production to ensure timely deliveries,” a Sailes official told reporters. Currently, mass production of the new M7 is underway, and deliveries have already started in several cities.
On October 13, Yu Chengdong appeared in a livestream from the Sailes Smart Factory, praising its “smart manufacturing” capabilities and expressing confidence in timely deliveries. He mentioned that the AITO M7 has received over 60,000 orders in just over a month since its launch. The supply chain received over 1 billion in new investments, and more than 20,000 people were added to ensure fast, high-quality deliveries. Sailes Smart Factory is operating at full capacity 22 hours a day to ensure customers receive their cars as soon as possible.
To prevent long delivery times leading to lost orders, AITO announced a compensation scheme for the new M7 on October 17. Depending on the waiting time, customers ordering the new M7 Plus and new M7 Max can receive up to 10,000 yuan in compensation.
Worth noting, the Zhijie S7, developed in collaboration between Huawei and Chery, will launch in November. This vehicle will be the first sedan under Huawei’s smart choice lineup and will come with the HarmonyOS 4 system and Huawei’s advanced ADS 2.0 smart driving system. “The Zhijie S7 surpasses the Tesla Model S in every specification,” Yu Chengdong stated.
“The success of the AITO brand proves Huawei’s capabilities in the smart electric car industry. The smart choice model is scaling from 1 to N, and Huawei’s ‘smart choice circle’ is expected to reach sales of millions in the long run. The expanding product matrix brings new investment opportunities,” CITIC Securities mentioned in a related report.