Huawei is loosening its grip on the Aito brand, handing more control back to its partner Seres in a restructuring that marks a milestone for one of China's most successful EV collaborations. According to Chinese media outlet Huxiu, the two companies will move from Huawei's all-round "nanny-style" support to a lighter-touch model, with Seres taking the lead on product, marketing, sales and service.
The shift effectively means Aito, the brand born from the Huawei-Seres partnership in late 2021, will learn to walk on its own. For Huawei, the move frees up resources to nurture the other four brands in its Harmony Intelligent Mobility Alliance (HIMA) - Zhijie, Xiangjie, Zunjie and Shangjie - all of which are still in the early stages of building sales momentum.
Investors reacted nervously. Seres shares plunged more than 6% in intraday trading on the news before closing down 5.09%. The market is split on whether independence helps or hurts Seres, which has leaned heavily on Huawei's technology, brand and retail channels since the partnership began.
From microvan maker to EV star
Before Huawei, Seres was a struggling automaker. Known as Sokon until July 2022, the company built microvans and budget SUVs for the fuel-car era, and earlier supplied seat springs and shock absorbers for Changan's microvan line. It entered vehicle manufacturing in 2003 through a tie-up with Dongfeng, and by 2017 was generating over 20 billion yuan (about $2.8 billion) in annual revenue.
Seres founder Zhang Xinghai saw the EV shift coming early, investing in a US-based startup in 2016 that eventually became the SERES brand. But the company's first EV, the SF5, sold just 732 units in its launch year of 2020. The turning point came when Huawei came on board. Under the "smart selection" model - one of three cooperation modes Huawei offers automakers - Huawei took a deep role in vehicle development, manufacturing support and sales channels, with Aito launches staged at Huawei events and sold through Huawei stores.
The payoff was dramatic. Seres revenue jumped 305% in 2024 to 145.2 billion yuan (about $20.5 billion) and rose another 13.7% in 2025 to 165.1 billion yuan, with net profit of 5.9 billion yuan in each year. At its peak in September 2025, Seres' market value exceeded 300 billion yuan, briefly overtaking several legacy automakers, and the Zhang family was crowned Chongqing's richest.
Costly dependence
But the partnership came at a price. Seres' purchases from Huawei for intelligent hardware surged from 5.8 billion yuan in 2022 to 42 billion yuan in 2024. On top of that, Seres paid fees for channel services, brand and technology licensing estimated by media and analysts at about 10% of each vehicle's price. That helps explain why Seres' net margin was just 3.27% in 2024 and 3.72% in 2025, despite gross margins above 26%.
The pressure showed this year. In the first half of 2026, Seres swung to a net loss of 1.7 billion yuan, citing rising raw material costs and asset impairments. Whether shedding Huawei's service fees will improve profitability - or whether Aito can survive without Huawei's marketing muscle - is the key question for investors.
Huawei's other motivation is clearer. In the first eight months of 2026, HIMA delivered about 329,400 vehicles, but Aito accounted for over 60% of that with 201,900 units. The other four brands are struggling to scale: Zhijie has found a niche with the V9 MPV above 400,000 yuan, while Xiangjie targets the 400,000-700,000 yuan executive segment, Zunjie aims at the million-yuan ultra-luxury market, and Shangjie - the youngest brand, built with SAIC - targets the fiercely competitive 150,000-250,000 yuan family segment. By letting Aito go, Huawei hopes to replicate its playbook across the rest of the HIMA lineup.
