Filed Pursuant to Rule 424(b)(3)​

 Registration No. 333-271861​

PROSPECTUS

ECARX Holdings Inc.

23,871,971 CLASS A ORDINARY SHARES UNDERLYING WARRANTS,
291,679,672 CLASS A ORDINARY SHARES AND
8,872,000 WARRANTS TO PURCHASE CLASS A ORDINARY SHARES

This prospectus relates to the issuance by ECARX Holdings Inc. of up to 23,871,971 of its Class A ordinary shares, par value US$0.000005 per share (“Class A Ordinary Shares”), including (i) 14,999,971 Class A Ordinary Shares issuable upon the exercise of warrants to purchase Class A Ordinary Shares at an exercise price of US$11.50 per share, which were issued on December 20, 2022 (the “Closing Date”) in exchange for the public warrants of COVA Acquisition Corp. (“COVA”) that were issued in the initial public offering of COVA (the “Public Warrants”); and (ii) 8,872,000 Class A Ordinary Shares issuable upon the exercise of warrants to purchase Class A Ordinary Shares at an exercise price of US$11.50 per share, which were issued to COVA Acquisition Sponsor LLC (the “Sponsor”) on the Closing Date (the “Sponsor Warrants”, and collectively with the Public Warrants, the “Warrants”) in exchange for the private placement warrants purchased by the Sponsor for a total consideration of US$8,872,000 in a private placement concurrent with the initial public offering of COVA at a price of US$1.00 per warrant.

This prospectus also relates to the potential offer and sale from time to time by the selling securityholders named in this prospectus or their pledgees, donees, transferees, assignees or other successors in interest (that receive any of the securities as a gift, distribution, or other non-sale related transfer) (collectively, the “Selling Securityholders”) of up to (A) 291,679,672 Class A Ordinary Shares, which include (i) 73,810,070 Class A Ordinary Shares beneficially owned by SHINE LINK VENTURE LIMITED (which have been and will continue to be distributed, in whole or in part, to recipients of incentive awards we have previously granted and administered through SHINE LINK VENTURE LIMITED), Baidu (Hong Kong) Limited and Geely Automobile Holdings Limited (the “Legacy Shares”), which were originally acquired at a price of approximately (after accounting for the Recapitalization Factor (as defined below)) US$0.00, US$6.71 and US$9.70 per share prior to the Closing Date, respectively; (ii) 144,440,574 Class A Ordinary Shares beneficially owned by Fu&Li Industrious Innovators Limited and 48,960,916 Class A Ordinary Shares issuable upon the conversion of 48,960,916 Class B Ordinary Shares beneficially owned by Fu&Li Industrious Innovators Limited and Jie&Hao Holding Limited (collectively, the “Legacy Founder Shares”), which were originally acquired at a price of approximately (after accounting for the Recapitalization Factor (as defined below)) US$0.40, US$0.40, and US1.17 per share prior to the Closing Date, respectively; (iii) 5,250,000 Class A Ordinary Shares issued to the Sponsor (the “Sponsor Shares”) on the Closing Date in exchange for the Class B ordinary shares of COVA, which were purchased by the Sponsor at a price of approximately US$0.0048 per share and subsequently distributed to certain members of the Sponsor; (iv) 8,872,000 Class A Ordinary Shares issuable upon the exercise of the Sponsor Warrants which warrants were subsequently distributed to certain members of the Sponsor; (v) 3,500,000 Class A Ordinary Shares issued to Luminar Technologies, Inc. and Geely Investment Holding Ltd. (the “Strategic Investors” and each a “Strategic Investor”) on the Closing Date pursuant to certain strategic investment agreements entered into on May 26, 2022 (the “Strategic Investment Agreements” and each a “Strategic Investment Agreement”), at a price of US$10.00 per share (“Strategic Investor Shares”); (vi) 1,052,632 Class A Ordinary Shares issued to Lotus Technology Inc. (“Lotus”) on the Closing Date as a result of the automatic conversion, at a conversion price of US$9.50, of US$10 million aggregate principal amount of convertible note (the “Lotus Note”) purchased by Louts for a purchase price of US$10 million pursuant to a convertible note purchase agreement entered into on May 9, 2022 (“Lotus Shares”); (vii) 5,793,480 Class A Ordinary Shares issuable upon conversion of convertible notes (the “Investor Notes” and each an “Investor Note”) at a conversion price of US$11.5 per share (subject to customary adjustments on the conversion price), which were issued to SPDB International (Hong Kong) Limited and CNCB (Hong Kong) Investment Limited (the “CB Investors” and each a “CB Investor”) pursuant to a convertible note purchase agreement entered into on October 25, 2022 (the “CB Conversion Shares”), whereby the CB Investors purchased an aggregate principal amount of US$65 million Investor Notes for a purchase price of US$65 million; and (B) 8,872,000 Sponsor Warrants. These securities are being registered to satisfy certain registration rights ECARX Holdings has granted to permit the Selling Securityholders to sell securities from time to time, in amounts, at prices and on terms determined at the time of offering. Mr. Eric Li (Li Shufu), our controlling shareholder, and Mr. Ziyu Shen, our Chairman and Chief Executive Officer, can sell all Ordinary Shares beneficially owned by them under

this prospectus, being 168,921,032 Class A Ordinary Shares (including (i) 144,440,574 Class A Ordinary Shares and (ii) 24,480,458 Class A Ordinary Shares issuable upon the conversion of 24,480,458 Class B Ordinary Shares beneficially owned by Fu&Li Industrious Innovators Limited, an affiliate of Mr. Eric Li (Li Shufu)) and 24,480,458 Class A Ordinary Shares (issuable upon the conversion of 24,480,458 Class B Ordinary Shares beneficially owned by Jie&Hao Holding Limited, an affiliate of Mr. Ziyu Shen), respectively, and constituting approximately 46.0% and 6.7% of our issued and outstanding Ordinary Shares as of September 21, 2023 (assuming the exercise of all outstanding Warrants and the conversion of Investor Notes), respectively, so long as the registration statement of which this prospectus forms a part is available for use. The Ordinary Shares beneficially owned by Mr. Eric Li (Li Shufu) and Mr. Ziyu Shen represented 48.2% and 30.3% of the aggregate voting power of our total issued and outstanding share capital as of September 21, 2023 (assuming the exercise of all outstanding Warrants and the conversion of Investor Notes), respectively. These shares were acquired at prices significantly below the current trading price of the Class A Ordinary Shares. The sales of these securities could result in a significant decline in the public trading price of the Class A Ordinary Shares and could impair our ability to raise capital through the sale of additional equity securities. See “Risk Factors — Risks Relating to Our Securities — Sales of a substantial number of our securities in the public market by the Selling Securityholders and/or by our existing securityholders could cause the price of our securities to fall.”

The Selling Securityholders may offer, sell or distribute all or a portion of these securities from time to time through public or private transactions, at either prevailing market prices or at privately negotiated prices. The Selling Securityholders may sell these securities through ordinary brokerage transactions, in underwritten offerings, directly to market makers of our securities or through any other means described in the section entitled “Plan of Distribution” herein. In connection with any sales of securities offered hereunder, the Selling Securityholders, any underwriters, agents, brokers or dealers participating in such sales may be deemed to be “underwriters” within the meaning of the Securities Act of 1933, as amended, or the “Securities Act.”

The Class A Ordinary Shares and Warrants are listed on the Nasdaq Stock Market LLC, or “Nasdaq,” under the trading symbols “ECX” and “ECXWW,” respectively. On September 27, 2023, the closing price for the Class A Ordinary Shares on Nasdaq was US$3.37. On September 27, 2023, the closing price for the Warrants on Nasdaq was US$0.04.

The securities registered herein are identified in this prospectus as the “Registered Securities.” In connection with the Business Combination, holders of 29,379,643 COVA Public Shares exercised their right to redeem their shares for cash at a redemption price of approximately US$10.13 per share, for an aggregate redemption amount of US$297,518,700.03, representing approximately 98% of the total COVA Class A Shares then outstanding. The Selling Securityholders can sell, under this prospectus, up to (i) 291,679,672 Class A Ordinary Shares constituting (on a post-exercise basis) approximately 79.5% of the total issued and outstanding ordinary shares of ECARX Holdings (assuming the exercise of all outstanding Warrants and the conversion of Investor Notes), and (ii) 8,872,000 Warrants, representing approximately 37.2% of our outstanding Warrants, as of September 21, 2023. Sales of a substantial number of Registered Securities, or the perception that those sales might occur, could result in a significant decline in the public trading price of our securities and could impair our ability to raise capital through the sale or issuance of additional equity securities. We are unable to predict the effect that such sales may have on the prevailing market price of our securities. Despite such a decline in the public trading price, certain Selling Securityholders may still experience a positive rate of return on the Registered Securities due to the lower price at which they acquired the Registered Securities compared to other public investors and may be incentivized to sell the Class A Ordinary Shares or Warrants when others are not. For example, based on the closing price of the Class A Ordinary Shares and Warrants as referenced above, holders of the Sponsor Shares may experience a potential profit of up to US$3.37 per share on the Sponsor Shares; holders of the Legacy Shares may experience a potential profit up to US$3.37 per share; holders of the Legacy Founder Shares may experience a potential profit ranging from US$2.20 to US$2.97 per share; the Strategic Investors may experience a potential profit on the Strategic Investor Shares if the price of the Class A Ordinary Shares exceeds US$10.00 per share; Lotus Technology Inc. may experience a potential profit on the Lotus Shares if the price of the Class A Ordinary Shares exceeds US$9.50 per share; the CB Investors may experience a potential profit on the CB Conversion Shares if the price of the Class A Ordinary Shares exceeds US$11.50 per share; and the Sponsor may experience a potential profit on the Sponsor Warrants if the price of the Class Ordinary Shares exceeds US$11.50 per share. Public investors may not experience a similar rate of return on the securities they purchase due to differences in the purchase prices that they paid and the current trading price.

We will not receive any proceeds from any sale of the Registered Securities by the Selling Securityholders. We will receive proceeds from the exercise of Warrants if the Warrants are exercised for cash. The likelihood

that warrant holders will exercise the Warrants and any cash proceeds that we would receive are dependent upon the market price of the Class A Ordinary Shares, among other things. If the market price for the Class A Ordinary Shares is less than US$11.50 per share, we believe warrant holders will be unlikely to exercise their Warrants. There is no assurance that the Warrants will be “in the money” prior to their expiration or that the warrant holders will exercise their Warrants. Holders of the Sponsor Warrants have the option to exercise the Sponsor Warrants on a cashless basis in accordance with the Warrant Agreement. To the extent that any Warrants are exercised on a cashless basis, the amount of cash we would receive from the exercise of the Warrants will decrease. We will pay the expenses associated with registering the sales by the Selling Securityholders, as described in more details in the section titled “Use of Proceeds” appearing elsewhere in this prospectus.

We are an “emerging growth company” as defined in the Jumpstart Our Business Startups Act of 2012 (“JOBS Act”) and are therefore eligible to take advantage of certain reduced reporting requirements otherwise applicable to other public companies.

We are also a “foreign private issuer,” as defined in the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended (the “Exchange Act”) and are exempt from certain rules under the Exchange Act that impose certain disclosure obligations and procedural requirements for proxy solicitations under Section 14 of the Exchange Act. In addition, our officers, directors and principal shareholders are exempt from the reporting and “short- swing” profit recovery provisions under Section 16 of the Exchange Act. Moreover, we are not required to file periodic reports and financial statements with the SEC as frequently or as promptly as U.S. companies whose securities are registered under the Exchange Act.

In addition, as of September 21, 2023, Mr. Eric Li (Li Shufu), our co-founder, beneficially owned 144,440,574 Class A Ordinary Shares and 24,480,458 Class B Ordinary Shares through entities controlled by him. These Ordinary Shares represent approximately 50.03% of the aggregate voting power of our total issued and outstanding share capital. As a result, we qualify as a “controlled company” within the meaning of Nasdaq’s corporate governance standards and have the option not to comply with certain requirements to which companies that are not controlled companies are subject, including the requirement that a majority of our board of directors shall consist of independent directors and the requirement that our nominating and corporate governance committee and compensation committee shall be composed entirely of independent directors.

ECARX Holdings is not a Chinese operating company but a Cayman Islands holding company. We conduct operations through our subsidiaries, with our operations in China currently being conducted by our PRC subsidiaries. Investors in the Class A Ordinary Shares or in ECARX Holdings are not acquiring equity interest in any operating company but instead are acquiring interest in a Cayman Islands holding company. This holding company structure involves unique risks to investors. As a holding company, ECARX Holdings may rely on dividends from its subsidiaries for cash requirements, including any payment of dividends to its shareholders. The ability of our subsidiaries to pay dividends or make distributions to ECARX Holdings may be restricted by laws and regulations applicable to them or the debt they incur on their own behalf or the instruments governing their debt. In addition, PRC regulatory authorities could disallow this holding company structure and limit or hinder our ability to conduct our business through, receive dividends or distributions from, or transfer funds to, the operating companies or list on a U.S. or other foreign exchange, which could cause the value of our securities to significantly decline or become worthless. See “Prospectus Summary — Our Corporate Structure.” Unless otherwise stated or unless the context otherwise requires, references in this prospectus to (i) “ECARX Holdings” are to ECARX Holdings Inc., (ii) “ECARX,” “we,” “us,” “our,” “the Company” and “our company” are to ECARX Holdings and its subsidiaries (and, in the context of describing our operations and consolidated financial information for the periods ended prior to the Restructuring, also to the VIE and its subsidiaries), and (iii) “mainland China subsidiaries” are to our subsidiaries in mainland China.

Historically, we conducted our operations in China through our PRC subsidiaries and through Hubei ECARX Technology Co., Ltd. (“Hubei ECARX” or “our VIE”), with which we, our subsidiary, and the nominee shareholders of Hubei ECARX entered into certain contractual arrangement. PRC laws, regulations, and rules restrict and impose conditions on foreign investment in certain types of businesses, and we operated certain businesses, including businesses that were subject to such restrictions and conditions in China such as surveying and mapping services and ICP businesses, through our VIE. We did not own an equity interest in our VIE or its subsidiaries and relied on the contractual arrangements to direct the business operations of our VIE. Such structure enables investors to invest in China-based companies in sectors

where foreign direct investment is prohibited or restricted under PRC laws and regulations. Following a restructuring in 2022 (the “Restructuring”), the contractual arrangement was terminated and currently we do not have any VIE in China.

Cash is transferred from ECARX Holdings to our subsidiaries through capital contributions, loans, and inter-company advances. In addition, cash may be transferred among our subsidiaries, through capital contributions, loans and settlement of transactions. Under our cash management policy, the amount of inter-company transfers of funds is determined based on the working capital needs of the subsidiaries and inter-company transactions, and is subject to internal approval processes and funding arrangements. Our management regularly reviews and monitors the cash flow forecast and working capital needs of our subsidiaries. In 2020, ECARX Holdings made advances in the principal amount of US$15.0 million to a subsidiary and an intermediary holding company of ours, ECARX Technology Limited. In 2021 (i) ECARX Holdings made advances in the principal amount of US$478.5 million to ECARX Technology Limited and provided loans in the principal amount of US$11.0 million to our subsidiaries ECARX Limited and ECARX Sweden AB, and (ii) ECARX Technology Limited provided a loan in the principal amount of US$2.3 million to our subsidiary, ECARX Sweden AB, which has been fully repaid. In 2022, (i) ECARX Holdings made advances in the principal amount of US$50.9 million to ECARX Technology Limited, and (ii) ECARX Holdings provided loans in the principal amount of US$3.0 million to ECARX Sweden AB, (iii) ECARX Holdings provided loans in the principal amount of US$35.0 million to ECARX (Hubei) Tech Co., Ltd., (iv) ECARX Holdings made advances in the principal amount of US$21.0 million to ECARX Group Limited, (v) ECARX Holdings received US$8.8 million as repayment from ECARX Sweden AB, and (vi) JICA Intelligent Robotics Co., Ltd. (“JICA Intelligent”) provided loans in the principal amount of RMB150.0 million to ECARX (Hubei) Tech Co., Ltd. For the six months ended June 30, 2023, (i) ECARX Technology Limited repaid an amount of US$115.2 million to ECARX Holdings (ii) ECARX Holdings made advances in the principal amount of US$100.0 million to ECARX Group Limited and US$2.0 million to ECARX Technology Limited, (iii) ECARX Holdings provided loans in the principal amount of US$15.0 million to ECARX (Hubei) Tech Co., Ltd., and (iv) ECARX (Hubei) Tech Co., Ltd. repaid an amount of RMB150.0 million to JICA Intelligent. In 2021, ECARX Technology Limited made capital contribution of US$7.6 million, US$250.0 million, and US$75.0 million to our subsidiaries, ECARX Sweden AB, ECARX (Wuhan) Technology Co., Ltd. and ECARX (Hubei) Tech Co., Ltd., respectively. In 2021, ECARX (Wuhan) Technology Co., Ltd., a subsidiary of ours, made capital contribution of RMB10.0 million to ECARX (Shanghai) Technology Co., Ltd., another subsidiary of ours. In 2022, ECARX Technology Limited made capital contribution of US$14.6 million and US$25.0 million to its subsidiaries, ECARX Limited and ECARX (Hubei) Tech Co., Ltd., respectively. For the six months ended June 30, 2023, (i) ECARX Group Limited made capital contribution of US$27.2 million to ECARX Technology Limited (ii) ECARX Technology Limited made capital contribution of US$19.5 million to its subsidiary, ECARX Limited and (iii) ECARX (Hubei) Tech Co., Ltd. made capital contribution of RMB1.0 million to its subsidiary, JICA Intelligent. In 2020, 2021, and 2022, Hubei ECARX received nil, RMB2.1 billion and RMB157 million in the form of loans from our subsidiaries, respectively. In 2020 and 2021, subsidiaries of Hubei ECARX made payments totaling US$0.7 million and US$1.7 million to ECARX Technology Limited relating to certain sales transactions. In 2021, Hubei ECARX received RMB270.0 million in the form of loans from JICA Intelligent. In 2022, Hubei ECARX, ECARX Technology and ECARX (Hubei) Tech Co. made payments totaling RMB36.1 million, US$2.2 million, and RMB60.0 million, respectively, to ECARX Sweden AB relating to certain R&D expense. In 2022, Hubei ECARX made payments totaling RMB270.0 million to JICA Intelligent. We, our subsidiaries, and, for the periods ended prior to the Restructuring, the consolidated VIEs have not declared or paid dividends or made any distributions as of the date of this prospectus. We do not intend to declare dividends or make distributions in the near future. Any determination to pay dividends in the future will be at the discretion of our board of directors. Any determination to pay dividends in the future will be at the discretion of our board of directors. For more details, see “Prospectus Summary — Our Corporate Structure — Cash Transfers and Dividend Distribution.”

We face various legal and operational risks and uncertainties relating to doing business in China. Our business operations are primarily conducted in China, and we are subject to complex and evolving PRC laws and regulations. For example, the PRC government has recently issued statements and regulatory actions relating to areas such as regulatory approvals on overseas offerings and listings by, and foreign investment in, mainland China-based issuers, anti-monopoly regulatory actions, and oversight on cybersecurity and data privacy. It remains uncertain how PRC government authorities will regulate overseas listings and offerings in general and whether we can fully comply with the relevant regulatory requirements, including completing filings with the China Securities Regulatory Commission (the “CSRC”), and whether we are required to

complete other filings or obtain any specific regulatory approvals from the CSRC, the Cyberspace Administration of China (the “CAC”), or any other PRC government authorities for our overseas offerings and listings, as applicable. In addition, if future regulatory developments mandate clearance of cybersecurity review or other specific actions to be completed by China-based companies listed on foreign stock exchanges, such as us, we face uncertainties as to whether such clearance can be timely obtained, or at all. These risks may impact our ability to conduct certain businesses, accept foreign investments, or list and conduct offerings on a stock exchange in the United States or any other foreign country. These risks could result in a material adverse change in our operations and the value of our Class A Ordinary Shares, significantly limit or completely hinder our ability to continue to offer securities to investors, or cause the value of such securities to significantly decline or become worthless. For a detailed description of risks relating to doing business in China, see “Risk Factors — Risks Relating to Doing Business in China.”

Pursuant to the Holding Foreign Companies Accountable Act (the “HFCAA”), if the SEC determines that we have filed audit reports issued by a registered public accounting firm that has not been subject to inspections by the PCAOB for two consecutive years, the SEC will prohibit our securities from being traded on a national securities exchange or in the over-the-counter trading market in the United States. On December 16, 2021, the PCAOB issued a report to notify the SEC of its determination that the PCAOB was unable to inspect or investigate completely registered public accounting firms headquartered in mainland China and Hong Kong, including our auditor. On December 15, 2022, the PCAOB issued a report that vacated its December 16, 2021 determination and removed mainland China and Hong Kong from the list of jurisdictions where it is unable to inspect or investigate completely registered public accounting firms. We have not been and, for the foregoing reason, we do not expect to be identified as a Commission-Identified Issuer under the HFCAA following the filing of our annual report on Form 20-F for the fiscal year ended December 31, 2022 on April 24, 2023. Each year, the PCAOB will determine whether it can inspect and investigate completely registered public accounting firms in mainland China and Hong Kong, among other jurisdictions. If PCAOB determines in the future that it no longer has full access to inspect and investigate completely registered public accounting firms in mainland China and Hong Kong and we continue to use a registered public accounting firm headquartered in one of these jurisdictions to issue an audit report on our financial statements filed with the SEC, we would be identified as a Commission-Identified Issuer following the filing of the annual report on Form 20-F for the relevant fiscal year. There can be no assurance that we would not be identified as a Commission-Identified Issuer for any future fiscal year, and if we were so identified for two consecutive years, we would become subject to the prohibition on trading under the HFCAA. See “Risk Factors — Risks Relating to Doing Business in China — The PCAOB had historically been unable to inspect our auditor in relation to their audit work performed for our financial statements and the inability of the PCAOB to conduct inspections of our auditor in the past has deprived our investors with the benefits of such inspections,” and “Risk Factors — Risks Relating to Doing Business in China — Our securities may be prohibited from trading in the United States under the HFCAA in the future if the PCAOB is unable to inspect or investigate completely auditors located in mainland China and Hong Kong. The delisting of our securities, or the threat of their being delisted, may materially and adversely affect the value of your investment.”

Investing in our securities involves a high degree of risk. See “Risk Factors” beginning on page 12 of this prospectus and other risk factors contained in the documents incorporated by reference herein for a discussion of information that should be considered in connection with an investment in our securities.

Neither the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission nor any other regulatory body has approved or disapproved of these securities or determined if this prospectus is truthful or complete. Any representation to the contrary is a criminal offense.

PROSPECTUS DATED OCTOBER 6, 2023

 

TABLE OF CONTENTS

 

i

 

ABOUT THIS PROSPECTUS

This prospectus is part of a registration statement on Form F-1 filed with the SEC by ECARX Holdings Inc. The Selling Securityholders named in this prospectus may, from time to time, sell the securities described in this prospectus in one or more offerings. This prospectus includes important information about us, the securities being offered by us and the Selling Securityholders and other information you should know before investing. Any prospectus supplement may also add, update, or change information in this prospectus. If there is any inconsistency between the information contained in this prospectus and any prospectus supplement, you should rely on the information contained in that particular prospectus supplement.

This prospectus does not contain all of the information provided in the registration statement that we filed with the SEC. You should read this prospectus together with the additional information about us described in the section below entitled “Where You Can Find More Information.” You should rely only on the information contained or incorporated by reference in this prospectus or any supplement. Neither we nor any of the Selling Securityholders has authorized anyone to provide you with different or additional information, other than that contained in this prospectus or in any free writing prospectus prepared by or on behalf of us or to which we may have referred you, and neither we nor any of the Selling Securityholders takes any responsibility for, or provide any assurance as to the reliability of, any other information that others may give you. We may also provide a prospectus supplement or post-effective amendment to the registration statement to add information to, or update or change information contained in, this prospectus. You should not assume that the information in this prospectus or any supplement is accurate as of any date other than the date on the front of each document. Our business, financial condition, results of operations and prospects may have changed since that date.

The securities offered by this prospectus are being offered only in jurisdictions where the offer is permitted. Neither we nor any of the Selling Securityholders is making an offer to sell the Registered Securities in any jurisdiction where the offer or sale thereof is not permitted, nor have we or the Selling Securityholders taken any action to permit the possession or distribution of this prospectus in any jurisdiction other than the United States where action for that purpose is required. Persons outside the United States who come into possession of this prospectus must inform themselves about and observe any restrictions relating to the Registered Securities and the distribution of this prospectus outside the United States.

References to “U.S. Dollars,” “USD,” “US$” and “$” in this prospectus are to United States dollars, the legal currency of the United States. Discrepancies in any table between totals and sums of the amounts listed are due to rounding. Certain amounts and percentages have been rounded; consequently, certain figures may add up to be more or less than the total amount and certain percentages may add up to be more or less than 100% due to rounding.

On June 30, 2023, we made additional capital injection in JICA Intelligent Robotics Co., Ltd. (“JICA Intelligent”), an entity under common control, and increased our equity interest in JICA Intelligent from 50% to 70%.We own a controlling interest in JICA Intelligent following the additional investment. As the acquisition of JICA Intelligent was a combination between entities under common control, our consolidated financial statements as of December 31, 2022 and 2021, and for each of the years in the two-year period ended December 31, 2022 have been restated. Please see Note 29(b) of our consolidated financial statements included elsewhere in this prospectus.

 

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INDUSTRY AND MARKET DATA

Unless otherwise indicated, information contained in this prospectus concerning our industries and the regions in which we operate, including our general expectations and market position, market size, market opportunity, market share and other management estimates, is based on information obtained from industry publications and reports and forecasts provided to us. In some cases, we do not expressly refer to the sources from which this information is derived. This information is subject to significant uncertainties and limitations and is based on assumptions and estimates that may prove to be inaccurate. You are therefore cautioned not to give undue weight to this information.

We have not independently verified the accuracy or completeness of any such information. Similarly, internal surveys, industry forecasts and market research, which we believe to be reliable based upon our management’s knowledge of the industry, have not been independently verified. While we believe that the market data, industry forecasts and similar information included in this prospectus are generally reliable, such information is inherently imprecise. In addition, assumptions and estimates of our future performance and growth objectives and the future performance of our industry and the markets in which we operate are necessarily subject to a high degree of uncertainty and risk due to a variety of factors, including those discussed under the headings “Risk factors,” “Forward-Looking Statements” and “Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operation” in this prospectus.

 

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FORWARD-LOOKING STATEMENTS

This prospectus contains statements that are forward-looking statements within the meaning of the U.S. Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. These statements are based on management’s beliefs and expectations as well as on assumptions made by and data currently available to management, appear in a number of places throughout this document and include statements regarding, amongst other things, results of operations, financial condition, liquidity, prospects, growth, strategies and the industry in which we operate. The use of words “expects,” “intends,” “anticipates,” “estimates,” “predicts,” “believes,” “should,” “potential,” “may,” “preliminary,” “forecast,” “objective,” “plan,” or “target,” and other similar expressions are intended to identify forward-looking statements. These forward-looking statements are not guarantees of future performance and are subject to a number of risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially, including, but not limited to statements regarding our intentions, beliefs or current expectations concerning, among other things, results of operations, financial condition, liquidity, prospects, growth, strategies, future market conditions or economic performance and developments in the capital and credit markets and expected future financial performance, and the markets in which we operate.

Forward-looking statements involve a number of risks, uncertainties and assumptions, and actual results or events may differ materially from those projected or implied in those statements. Important factors that could cause such differences include, but are not limited to:

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Developments related to the COVID-19 pandemic, including, among others, with respect to stay-at-home orders, social distancing measures, the success of vaccine rollouts, numbers of COVID-19 cases and the occurrence of new COVID-19 strains;

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The regulatory environment and changes in laws, regulations or policies in the jurisdictions in which we operate;

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The overall economic environment and general market and economic conditions in the jurisdictions in which we operate and beyond;

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The progress and results of the research and development of our products and services, as well as of their manufacturing, launch, commercialization and delivery;

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The conditions and outlook of the automobile and automotive intelligence industries in China and globally;

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Our relationships with automotive OEMs, Tier 1 suppliers, and our other customers, suppliers, other business partners and stakeholders;

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Our ability to successfully compete in highly competitive industries and markets;

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Our ability to continue to adjust our offerings to meet market demand, attract customers to choose our products and services and grow our ecosystem;

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Our ability to execute our strategies, manage growth and maintain our corporate culture as we grow;

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Our anticipated investments in new products, services, collaboration arrangements, technologies and strategic acquisitions, and the effect of these investments on our results of operations;

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Changes in the needs for capital and the availability of financing and capital to fund these needs;

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Anticipated technology trends and developments and our ability to address those trends and developments with our products and services;

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The safety, price-competitiveness, quality and breadth of our products and services;

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The loss of key personnel and the inability to replace such personnel on a timely basis or on acceptable terms;

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Man-made or natural disasters, health epidemics, and other outbreaks including war, acts of international or domestic terrorism, civil disturbances, occurrences of catastrophic events and acts of God such as floods, earthquakes, wildfires, typhoons and other adverse weather and natural conditions that affect our business or assets;

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Exchange rate fluctuations;

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Changes in interest rates or rates of inflation;

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Legal, regulatory and other proceedings;

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The results of future financing efforts; and

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All other risks and uncertainties described in “Risk Factors” and “Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operation.”

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We would like to caution you not to place undue reliance on these forward-looking statements and you should read these statements in conjunction with the risk factors disclosed in “Risk Factors” and “Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operation” of this prospectus. Those risks are not exhaustive. We operate in a rapidly evolving environment. New risks emerge from time to time and it is impossible for our management to predict all risk factors, nor can we assess the impact of all factors on our business or the extent to which any factor, or combination of factors, may cause actual results to differ from those contained in any forward-looking statement. We do not undertake any obligation to update or revise the forward-looking statements except as required under applicable law.

 

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IMPORTANT INFORMATION ABOUT EXCHANGE RATES

Certain information presented in this prospectus has been converted from Renminbi to U.S. dollars at a rate of RMB7.2513 to US$1.00, the exchange rate in effect as of June 30, 2023 as set forth in the H.10 statistical release of The Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System. The certified noon buying rate in effect as of September 22, 2023 was RMB7.2980 to US$1.00. Exchange rates fluctuate, and such fluctuation can be significant. No representation is made that any Renminbi amounts referred to in this prospectus could have been, or could be, converted to U.S. dollars at any particular rate, or at all.

 

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FREQUENTLY USED TERMS

Unless otherwise stated or unless the context otherwise requires in this document:

“Business Combination” means, collectively, the First Merger, the Second Merger and the other transactions contemplated by the Merger Agreement;

“Cayman Islands Companies Act” or the “Companies Act” means the Companies Act (As Revised) of the Cayman Islands as the same may be amended from time to time.

“China” or “PRC” means the People’s Republic of China;

“Class A Ordinary Shares” means Class A ordinary shares of ECARX Holdings, par value US$0.000005 per share;

“Class B Ordinary Shares” means Class B ordinary shares of ECARX Holdings, par value US$0.000005 per share;

“Closing” means the closing of the Transactions contemplated by the Merger Agreement;

“Closing Date” means December 20, 2022, being the day on which the Closing occurred;

“Continental” means Continental Stock Transfer & Trust Company, a New York corporation;

“COVA” means COVA Acquisition Corp., an exempted company limited by shares incorporated under the laws of the Cayman Islands;

“COVA Founder Shares” means Class B ordinary shares of COVA, par value US$0.0001 per share, outstanding prior to the First Effective Time;

“COVA Public Shares” means Class A ordinary shares of COVA, par value US$0.0001 per share, outstanding prior to the First Effective Time;

“COVA Public Warrants” means the redeemable warrants issued in the IPO, each entitling its holder to purchase one Class A ordinary share of COVA at an exercise price of US$11.50 per share, subject to adjustment, outstanding prior to the First Effective Time;

“COVA Private Warrants” means the warrants issued to the Sponsor in a private placement simultaneously with the closing of the IPO, each entitling its holder to purchase one Class A ordinary share of COVA at an exercise price of US$11.50 per share, subject to adjustment, outstanding prior to the First Effective Time;

“COVA Shareholders” means holders of COVA Shares outstanding prior to the First Effective Time;

“COVA Shares” means, collectively, COVA Public Shares and COVA Founder Shares;

“Co-Founder Shares” means all of the ECARX shares held by Mr. Ziyu Shen and 20,520,820 ECARX shares held by Mr. Eric Li (Li Shufu) immediately prior to the Re-designation;

“Dissenting COVA Shares” means COVA Shares that are issued and outstanding immediately prior to the First Effective Time and that are held by COVA shareholders who shall have validly exercised their dissenters’ rights for such COVA Shares;

“ECARX,” “we,” “us,” “our,” “the Company” or “our company” means ECARX Holdings and its subsidiaries (and, in the context of describing ECARX’s operations and consolidated financial information, also its VIEs and their subsidiaries for the periods ended prior to the Restructuring). References to “our” financial statements, share capital, securities (including shares, options, and warrants), shareholders, directors, board of directors, and auditors are to the financial statements, share capital, securities (including shares, options and warrants), shareholders, directors, board of directors, and auditors of ECARX Holdings, respectively;

“ECARX Holdings” means ECARX Holdings Inc., an exempted company limited by shares incorporated under the laws of the Cayman Islands;

 

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“ECARX Options” means all outstanding options exercisable to purchase shares of ECARX Holdings;

“First Effective Time” means the effective time of the First Merger;

“First Merger” means the merger between Merger Sub 1 and COVA, with COVA as a wholly owned subsidiary of ECARX Holdings;

“Fully-Diluted Company Shares” means, without duplication, (a) the aggregate number of shares of ECARX Holdings (i) that are issued and outstanding immediately prior to the Re-designation and (ii) that are issuable upon the exercise of all ECARX Options and other equity securities of ECARX Holdings that are issued and outstanding immediately prior to the Re-designation (whether or not then vested or exercisable as applicable), minus (b) the shares of ECARX Holdings held by it or any subsidiary of ECARX Holdings (if applicable) as treasury shares;

“Geely Holding” means Zhejiang Geely Holding Group Co., Ltd;

“Investor Notes” means the convertible notes issued by ECARX Holdings under the Investor Note Purchase Agreement to certain institutional investors in the aggregate principal amount of US$65 million;

“Investor Note Purchase Agreement” means the convertible note purchase agreement dated October 25, 2022 and entered into between ECARX Holdings and certain institutional investors in respect of the Investor Notes;

“IPO” means COVA’s initial public offering, which was consummated on February 9, 2021;

“Lotus Note” means the convertible note issued by ECARX Holdings under the Lotus Note Purchase Agreement to Lotus Technology Inc. in the aggregate principal amount of US$10 million;

“Lotus Note Purchase Agreement” means the convertible note purchase agreement dated May 9, 2022 and entered into between ECARX Holdings and Lotus Technology Inc. in respect of the Lotus Note;

“mainland China subsidiaries” means the subsidiaries of ECARX Holdings in mainland China;

“Merger Agreement” means the Agreement and Plan of Merger, dated as of May 26, 2022 by and among COVA, ECARX Holdings, Merger Sub 1, and Merger Sub 2;

“Merger Sub 1” means Ecarx Temp Limited, an exempted company limited by shares incorporated under the laws of the Cayman Islands and a direct wholly owned subsidiary of ECARX Holdings;

“Merger Sub 2” means Ecarx&Co Limited, an exempted company limited by shares incorporated under the laws of the Cayman Islands and a direct wholly owned subsidiary of ECARX Holdings;

“Mergers” means, collectively, the First Merger and the Second Merger;

“Nasdaq” means The Nasdaq Stock Market LLC;

“Ordinary Shares” means, collectively, Class A Ordinary Shares and Class B Ordinary Shares;

“PCAOB” means the Public Company Accounting Oversight Board;

“Recapitalization” means (i) the recapitalization of authorized issued ordinary shares of ECARX immediately following the Re-designation and prior to the First Effective Time by way of a repurchase in exchange for issuance of such number of Class A Ordinary Shares and Class B Ordinary Shares, in each case, equal to the Recapitalization Factor, and (ii) the adjustment of each ECARX Options issued and outstanding immediately prior to the Recapitalization, such that each ECARX Option shall be exercisable for that number of Class A Ordinary Shares equal to the product of (A) the number of ECARX shares subject to such ECARX Option immediately prior to the Recapitalization multiplied by (B) the Recapitalization Factor (such product rounded down to the nearest whole number), and the per share exercise price for each Class A Ordinary Share issuable upon exercise of the ECARX Options, as adjusted, shall be equal to the quotient (rounded up to the nearest whole cent) obtained by dividing (x) the per share exercise price for each ECARX share subject to such ECARX Option immediately prior to the First Effective Time by (y) the Recapitalization Factor;

 

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“Recapitalization Factor” means the number resulting from dividing (i) US$3,400,000,000, being the pre- money equity value of ECARX as agreed between ECARX and COVA, by (ii) the product of (x) the Fully-Diluted Company Shares, and (y) US$10.00;

“Re-designation” means the re-designation of authorized share capital of ECARX immediately following the Preferred Share Conversion but immediately prior to the Recapitalization as follows: (A) each of the issued and outstanding ordinary shares of ECARX (other than the Co-Founder Shares) and each of 7,766,956,008 authorized but unissued ordinary share of ECARX Holdings shall be re-designated as one Class A Ordinary Share, where each Class A Ordinary Share shall entitle its holder to one vote on all matters subject to vote at general meetings of ECARX Holdings; (B) each of the issued and outstanding Co-Founder Shares and each of the 958,958,360 authorized but unissued ordinary shares of ECARX shall be re-designated as one Class B Ordinary Share, where each Class B Ordinary Share shall entitle its holder to ten votes on all matters subject to vote at general meetings of ECARX Holdings; and (C) 1,000,000,000 authorized but unissued ordinary shares of ECARX Holdings shall be re-designated as shares of par value of US$0.000005 each of such class or classes (however designated) as the board of directors of ECARX Holdings may determine in accordance with its seventh amended and restated memorandum and articles of association;

“Renminbi” or “RMB” means the legal currency of mainland China;

“Restructuring” means a series of transactions ECARX has implemented to restructure its organization and business operations in early 2022;

“SEC” means the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission;

“Second Merger” means the merger between Surviving Entity 1 and Merger Sub 2, with Merger Sub 2 surviving as a wholly-owned subsidiary of ECARX Holdings;

“Sponsor” means COVA Acquisition Sponsor LLC, a Cayman Islands limited liability company;

“Strategic Investors” means Luminar Technologies, Inc. and Geely Investment Holding Ltd.;

“Strategic Investment Agreements” means certain strategic investment agreements entered into between the Strategic Investors, on the one hand, and ECARX Holdings, on the other hand, concurrently with the execution of the Merger Agreement;

“Surviving Entity 1” means the surviving entity of the First Merger;

“Surviving Entity 2” means the surviving entity of the Second Merger;

“Units” means the units issued in the IPO, each consisting of one COVA Public Share and one-half of one COVA Public Warrant;

“U.S. Dollars,” “USD,” “US$,” and “$” means United States dollars, the legal currency of the United States;

“U.S. GAAP” means accounting principles generally accepted in the United States of America;

“VIE” means variable interest entity. “Our VIE,” “our former VIE,” or “Hubei ECARX” means Hubei ECARX Technology Co., Ltd., a former consolidated variable interest entity of ECARX; and

“Warrant Agreement” means the Warrant Agreement, dated as of February 4, 2021, by and between COVA and Continental, as warrant agent, as amended and assigned to ECARX Holdings pursuant to the Assignment, Assumption and Amendment Agreement by and among COVA, ECARX Holdings, and Continental dated as of December 20, 2022.

 

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RISK FACTORS

You should carefully consider the following risk factors, together with all of the other information included in this prospectus, before making an investment decision. The occurrence of one or more of the events or circumstances described in these risk factors, alone or in combination with other events or circumstances, may have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition, results of operations, prospects and trading price. The risks discussed below may not prove to be exhaustive and are based on certain assumptions made by us, which later may prove to be incorrect or incomplete. We may face additional risks and uncertainties that are not presently known to us, or that are currently deemed immaterial, but which may also ultimately have an adverse effect on us. The trading price and value of our Class A Ordinary Shares and Warrants could decline due to any of these risks, and you may lose all or part of your investment. This prospectus and any prospectus supplement or related free writing prospectus also contain forward-looking statements that involve risks and uncertainties. Our actual results could differ materially from those anticipated in these forward-looking statements as a result of certain factors, including the risks faced by us described below and elsewhere in this prospectus and any prospectus supplement or related free writing prospectus.

Risks Relating to Our Business and Industry

We have a relatively limited operating history and face significant challenges in a fast-developing industry.

We commenced operations in 2017. As we have a relatively limited operating history in the areas of our current focus, it is difficult to predict our future revenues and appropriately budget for our expenses, and we may have limited insight into trends that may emerge and affect our business. You should consider our business and prospects in light of the risks and challenges that we face as a new entrant into a fast-developing industry, including with respect to our ability to:

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advance our technologies;

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design and deliver intelligent, reliable, and quality solutions that ultimately appeal to customers continuously;

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establish, expand, and diversify our customer base;

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build a well-recognized and respected brand cost-effectively;

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market our products and services;

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optimize our pricing strategy;

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maintain a reliable, secure, high-performance, and scalable technology infrastructure;

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enhance our cybersecurity and data security;

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attract, retain, and motivate talented employees;

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improve and maintain our operating efficiency;

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compete in our industries;

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navigate an evolving and complex regulatory environment;

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manage supply chain effectively; and manage our growth effectively.

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If we fail to address any or all of these risks and challenges, our business, financial condition, and results of operations could be materially and adversely affected.

If our solutions do not effectively address the evolution of the automotive industry or automotive intelligence technologies, our business could be adversely affected.

The automotive industry and automotive intelligence technologies are rapidly evolving. Our business and prospects will depend on our ability to identify consumer needs, and to develop, introduce, and achieve market acceptance of our new and enhanced products in a cost-effective manner. We cannot assure you that our products and services will be or will continue to be accepted by the market.

 

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We have invested and will continue to invest significantly in research and development and we are in the process of developing a myriad of automotive computing platform, SoC core module, and software solution and products. Our investment in research and development may not result in marketable products or services or may result in products and services that generate less market acceptance and revenues than we anticipate. Although we believe that our technologies and products are promising, we cannot assure you that we can achieve our development goals and successfully commercialize all of these automotive intelligence technologies. In addition, we cannot assure you that, once commercialized, these technologies can stand the test of time.

We believe that the confidence and trust of our customers are essential in the success of our automotive intelligence technologies. Customers will be less likely to purchase our products if they are not convinced of the technical or functional superiority of our technologies. Any defects in or significant malfunctioning of our automotive intelligence products and services, or any negative perceptions of such, with or without any grounds, may weaken such confidence and trust in us, which may materially and adversely affect our reputation, financial condition, and results of operations. Similarly, suppliers and other third parties will be less likely to invest time and resources in developing business relationships with us if they are not convinced that our business or our technologies will succeed.

Changes in automobile sales and market demand can adversely affect our business.

Our business is directly related to automobile sales and production by OEMs. Automobile sales and production could sometimes be highly cyclical and, in addition to general economic conditions, also depend on other factors such as consumer confidence and preferences. Lower automobile sales would be expected to result in substantially all of our OEM customers lowering vehicle production schedules, which has a direct impact on our earnings and cash flows. In addition, automobile sales and production can be affected by labor relations issues, regulatory requirements, trade agreements, the availability of consumer financing, and other factors. Economic declines that result in a significant reduction in automobile sales and production by OEMs could materially and adversely affect our business, financial condition, and results of operations.

The demand for our products and services is also dependent on consumers’ demand for and adoption of intelligent vehicles, in general. The market for intelligent vehicles is still rapidly evolving, characterized by rapidly changing technologies, intense competition, evolving government regulation and industry standards, and changing consumer demands and behaviors. If the market for intelligent vehicles does not develop as we expect or develops more slowly than we expect, our business, financial condition, results of operations, and prospects will be affected.

In addition, there has also been a change in consumer preferences favoring mobility on demand services, such as car- and ride-sharing, as opposed to automobile ownership, which may result in a long-term reduction in the number of vehicles per capita.

Disruptions in the supply of components or the underlying raw materials used in our products may materially and adversely affect our business and profitability.

Our hardware products are comprised of electronic and mechanical components sourced from various third-party suppliers. A significant disruption in the supply of these components or the underlying raw materials, such as metals, petroleum-based resins, and chemicals, for any reason could impede production and delivery levels, which could materially increase our operating costs and materially decrease our profit margins.

Such supply chain disruptions could be caused by a range of incidents, such as total or partial shutdown of our suppliers’ plants or critical manufacturing lines due to strikes, mechanical breakdowns, electrical outages, fires, explosions, or political upheaval, as well as logistical complications due to weather conditions, natural disasters, nuclear accidents, mechanical failures, delayed customs clearance, or pandemics. In particular, following the disruptions to semiconductor manufacturers due to the COVID-19 pandemic and an increase in global demand for personal computers for work-from-home economies, there is an ongoing global chip shortage, which would materially and adversely affect the industries we operate in. Any of such supply chain disruptions may force us to suspend or cease production, even for a prolonged period of time.

 

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We do not control our suppliers or their business practices. Accordingly, we cannot guarantee that the quality of the components manufactured by them will be consistent and maintained to a high standard. Any defects of or quality issues with these components or any noncompliance incidents associated with these suppliers could result in quality issues with our products and hence force us to delay production or deliveries and compromise our brand image and results of operations. In addition, we cannot assure you that the suppliers will comply with ethical business practices, such as environmental responsibilities, fair wage practices and child labor laws, among others. A lack of demonstrated compliance could lead us to seek alternative suppliers, which could increase our costs and results in delayed delivery of our products, product shortages, or other disruptions of our operations.

Any supply chain disruptions, whether or not involving a single-source supplier, could require us to make significant additional efforts until an alternative supplier is fully qualified by us or is otherwise able to resume the supply. We cannot assure you that we would be able to successfully retain alternative suppliers or supplies on a timely basis, on acceptable terms, or at all. Moreover, if we experience a significant increase in demand or need to replace our existing suppliers, we cannot assure you that additional supplies will be available when required on terms that are favorable to us, or at all, or that any supplier would allocate sufficient supplies to us in order to meet our requirements or fill our orders in a timely manner. Any of the foregoing could materially and adversely affect our business, financial condition, results of operations, and prospects.

A reduction in the market share or changes in the product mix offered by our customers could materially and adversely affect our business, financial condition, and results of operations.

We depend on the continued growth, viability, and financial stability of our customers. Our customers primarily include OEMs and tier 1 automotive suppliers. The automotive industry is subject to rapid technological change, vigorous competition, short product life cycles, and cyclical consumer demand patterns and industry consolidation. When our customers are adversely affected by these factors, we may be similarly affected to the extent that our customers reduce the volume of orders for our products and services. As a result of changes affecting our customers, sales mix can shift, which may have either favorable or unfavorable impact on our revenues. For example, a shift in sales demand favoring a particular OEM’s vehicle model for which we do not have a supply contract may adversely affect our business. A shift in regional sales demand toward certain markets could adversely affect the sales of those of our customers that have a low market share in those regions, which in turn could materially and adversely affect our business.

The mix of vehicle offerings by our OEM customers, which can be affected by industry consolidation, also could affect our business. Any merger between major OEMs may result in the discontinuation of certain major vehicle brands previously marketed under separate companies, which may materially and adversely affect our financial condition and results of operations. In addition, a decrease in consumer demand for specific types of vehicles where we have traditionally supplied significantly could materially and adversely affect our business, financial condition, and results of operations.

The automotive intelligence industry is highly competitive, and we may not be successful in competing in this industry.

The automotive intelligence market is highly competitive. We have strategically entered into this market and we expect this segment to become more competitive in the future as more players make their entrance. Competition is based primarily on technology, innovation, quality, delivery, and price. Many of our current and potential competitors, particularly international competitors, have significantly greater financial, technical, manufacturing, marketing, and other resources than we do and may be able to devote greater resources to the design, development, manufacturing, distribution, promotion, sale, and support of their products. We cannot assure you that our products and services will be able to compete successfully with those of our existing and any new competitors. If we fail to compete successfully, our prospects, results of operations, and financial condition could be adversely affected.

We expect competition to intensify in the future in light of the increased demand for automotive intelligence technologies, the continuing globalization, and the consolidation in the automotive industry worldwide. Our future success will depend on our ability to develop superior advanced technology and to maintain our competitive position with respect to our technological advances over our competitors.

 

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Furthermore, the rapidly evolving nature of the markets in which we compete has attracted, and may continue to attract, new entrants, particularly in areas of evolving automotive technologies such as computing platform technologies and advanced driver-assistance systems, which have attracted new entrants from outside the traditional automotive industry, and any of these competitors may develop and introduce technologies that gain greater customer or consumer acceptance, which could adversely affect our future growth.

In addition, increased competition may lead to lower unit sales and increased inventory, which may in turn result in downward price pressure and adversely affect our business, financial condition, operating results, and prospects. Therefore, the ability to stay ahead of our competitors will be fundamental to our future success. Our competitors may foresee the course of market development more accurately than us, develop products and services that are superior to ours, have the ability to produce similar products at a lower cost than us, adapt more quickly than us to new technologies or evolving customer requirements, or develop or introduce new products or solutions before we do, particularly related to potential transformative technologies such as automotive central computing platform solutions and advanced driver-assistance systems. As a result, our products and services may not be able to compete successfully with those of our competitors. These trends may adversely affect our sales as well as the profit margins on our offerings. If we do not continue to innovate to develop or acquire new and compelling products that capitalize upon new technologies, this could have a material adverse impact on our results of operations.

We had negative net cash flows from operations in the past and have not been profitable, which may continue in the future.

We incurred net losses of RMB440.0 million, RMB1.2 billion, RMB1.6 billion (US$221.6 million), and RMB411.3 million (US$56.7 million) in 2020, 2021, 2022 and the six months ended June 30, 2023, respectively, and we have not been profitable since our inception. In addition, we had negative cash flows from operating activities of RMB368.0 million, RMB907.3 million, RMB461.3 million (US$63.6 million) and RMB962.9 million (US$132.8 million) in 2020, 2021, 2022, and the six months ended June 30, 2023, respectively. We have made significant up-front investments in research and development, service network, and sales and marketing to rapidly develop and expand our business. We expect to continue to invest significantly in these areas to establish and expand our business, and these investments may not result in an increase in revenue or positive cash flow on a timely basis, or at all.

We may not be able to generate sufficient revenues and we may incur substantial losses for a number of reasons, including lack of demand for our products and services, increasing competition, challenging macro-economic environment, as well as other risks discussed herein, and we may incur unforeseen expenses, or encounter difficulties, complications, or delays in generating revenue or achieving profitability. If we are unable to achieve profitability, we may have to reduce the scale of our operations, which may impede our business growth and adversely affect our financial condition and results of operations. In addition, our continuous operation depends on our capability to obtain sufficient external equity or debt financing. If we do not succeed in doing so, we may need to curtail our operations, which could adversely affect our business, results of operations, financial position, and cash flows.

We currently have a concentrated customer base with a limited number of key customers, particularly including certain of our related parties such as Geely Holding’s subsidiaries. The loss of one or more of our key customers, or a failure to renew our agreements with one or more of our key customers, could adversely affect our results of operations and ability to market our products and services.

We derive a substantial portion of our revenue from a limited number of key customers, particularly including certain of our related parties such as Geely Holding’s subsidiaries. Although we are expanding and diversifying our customer base, we may continue to have a concentrated customer base. In particular, Geely Holding and its subsidiaries have and are expected to continue to account for a substantial portion of our revenues. For the years ended December 31, 2020, 2021, and 2022 and for the six months ended June 30, 2023, sales to Geely Holding and its subsidiaries (which, for the avoidance of doubt, exclude sales of SoC Core Modules or software licenses by us to third party customers which are then integrated into their infotainment and cockpit products and sold by such third party customers to Geely Holding and its subsidiaries) accounted for 74.1%, 70.4%, 67.0% and 73.7% of our total revenues, respectively. The

 

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agreements between us and Geely Holding’s subsidiaries are described in more details in this prospectus under “Certain Relationships and Related Person Transactions — Related Person Transactions.”

We have maintained and will continue to maintain a close business relationship with Geely Holding and its subsidiaries. If we fail to continue our cooperation with Geely Holding, or if Geely Holding determines to conduct its business in a way that is not aligned with our business interests, or to take other actions that are detrimental to our interests, we will need to enter into renegotiation with Geely Holding relating to our partnership and to secure alternative and comparable business partners, which may be costly, time-consuming, and disruptive to our operations and financial performance. As a result, our business and operations could be severely disrupted, which could materially and adversely affect our results of operations and financial condition.

Industry data, projections, and estimates are inherently uncertain and subject to change.

Industry data and projections are inherently uncertain and subject to change. There can be no assurance that our industries will be as large as we anticipate or that projected growth will occur or continue. In addition, underlying market conditions are subject to change based on economic conditions, consumer preferences, and other factors including those that are beyond our control. We have provided projections and forecasts in the past. Our projected financial and operating information relies in large part upon variables, assumptions, and analyses developed by our management and only reflects estimates of future performance at the time such projection is made, which are subject to the need for periodic revision based on actual occurrence and business developments and may prove to be incorrect or inaccurate. The forecasts and projections also reflect assumptions as to certain business decisions that are subject to change. Multiple factors have impacted our business recently and, as a result of these factors, certain of the assumptions and estimates underlying our prior forecasts are no longer correct. As a result, our actual operating results may differ materially and adversely from those forecasted or projected and investors should not place any reliance on those forecasts or projections.

We are subject to risks and uncertainties associated with international operations and expansion, which may harm our business.

We conduct our business worldwide and we have offices in various countries. One of our key business strategies is to pursue international expansion of our business operations and market our products in multiple jurisdictions. We have established our international operations office in London and research and development and deployment capabilities in North America, Europe, and Southeast Asia.

As a result, our business is and we expect that our business will continue to be subject to a variety of risks associated with doing business internationally, including an increase in our expenses and diversion of management’s attention from other aspects of our business. Accordingly, our business and financial results in the future could be adversely affected due to a variety of factors, including:

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international economic and political conditions, and other political tensions between countries in which we do business;

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unexpected changes in, or impositions of, legislative or regulatory requirements, including changes in tax, data security, and privacy laws;

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differing legal standards with respect to protection of intellectual property and employment practices;

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local business and cultural factors that differ from our normal standards and practices, including business practices that we are prohibited from engaging in by the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act and other anticorruption laws and regulations;

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export or import controls and restrictions, including deemed export restrictions, tariffs, quotas and other trade barriers and restrictions;

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disruptions of capital and trading markets and currency fluctuations; and increased costs due to imposition of climate change regulations, such as carbon taxes, fuel or energy taxes, and pollution limits.

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In addition, we may be subject to increased regulatory risks and local competition in various jurisdictions where we plan to expand operations but has limited operating experience. Such increased regulatory burden and competition may limit the available market for our products and services and increase the costs associated with marketing the products and services where we are able to offer our products. If we are unable to manage the complexity of global operations successfully, or fail to comply with any of the regulations in other jurisdictions, our financial performance and operating results could suffer.

Our automotive intelligence technologies and related hardware and software could have defects, errors, or bugs, undetected or otherwise, which could create safety issues, reduce market adoption, damage our reputation with current or prospective customers, or expose us to product liability and other claims that could materially and adversely affect our business, financial condition, and results of operations.

Our automotive intelligence technologies are highly technical and complex, and our products and services built upon such technologies have in the past and may in the future experience defects, errors, or bugs at various stages of their usage and development. We may be unable to correct problems to our customers’ and users’ satisfaction in a timely manner. In addition, there may be undetected errors or defects especially as we introduce new products or release new versions. Defects, errors, or bugs in our products may only be discovered after they have been tested, commercialized, and deployed, and in that case, we may incur significant additional development costs and product recall, repair, or replacement costs. Moreover, we may be liable for personal injury, property damage, or other claims caused by such defects, errors, or bugs resulting in legal actions against us that are costly to defend, which could cause irreparable harm to our reputation and brand and hence our business, financial condition, and results of operations.

We rely on our business partners and other industry participants. Business collaboration with partners is subject to risks, and these relationships may not lead to significant revenue. Any adverse change in our cooperation with our business partners could harm our business.

Strategic business relationships are and will continue to be an important factor in the growth and success of our business. We have alliances and partnerships with other companies in various industries to help us enhance our technologies and commercialize our products. In addition, we need to continue to identify and negotiate for opportunities to collaborate with other industry participants, such as those who can provide key technology solutions, manufacturing and distribution services. If we are unable to maintain the existing relationships with our business partners, or if we fail to identify and negotiate additional relationships that are essential to our future expansion or success at attractive terms or at all, we may incur increased costs to develop and provide these capabilities on our own, and our business and operating results could be adversely affected.

Collaboration with third parties is subject to challenges and risks, some of which are beyond our control. For example, certain partnership agreements grant our partner or us the right to terminate such agreements for cause or without cause, including in some cases by paying a termination for convenience fee. In addition, such agreements have in the past and may in the future contain certain exclusivity provisions which, if triggered, could preclude us from working with other businesses with superior technologies or with whom we may prefer to partner with for other reasons.

We could experience delays in the development or delivery of our products to the extent our partners do not meet agreed upon timelines or experience capacity constraints. We could also experience disagreement in budget or funding for any joint development project. There is also a risk of potential disputes with partners in the future, including with respect to intellectual property rights. Moreover, if our existing partner agreements were to be terminated, we may be unable to timely find alternative agreements on terms and conditions acceptable to us. Any of the foregoing could adversely affect our business, results of operations, and financial condition.

Our business plans require a significant amount of capital. In addition, our future capital needs may require us to sell additional equity or debt securities that may dilute our shareholders or introduce covenants that may restrict our operations or our ability to pay dividends.

We will need significant capital to, among other things, conduct research and development, expand our production capacity, and roll out our new and enhanced products and services. As we ramp up our operations,

 

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we may also require significant capital to maintain our property, plant, and equipment and such costs may be greater than what we currently anticipate. We expect that our level of capital expenditures will be significantly affected by demand for our products and services. The fact that we have a limited operating history means we have limited historical data to project the demand for our products and services in the future. As a result, our future capital requirements may be uncertain and actual capital requirements may be different from what we currently anticipate. The feasibility of our plan is contingent upon many factors outside our control. Our success is dependent upon our ability to finance our business operations and we will need to seek equity or debt financing for our cash requirements to continue our activities. Such financing might not be available to us in a timely manner or on terms that are acceptable, or at all. If we cannot obtain sufficient capital on acceptable terms, our business, financial condition, and prospects may be materially and adversely affected.

Our ability to obtain the necessary financing to carry out our business plan is subject to a number of factors, including general market conditions and investor acceptance of our business plan. These factors may make the timing, amount, terms, and conditions of such financing unattractive or unavailable to us. If we are unable to raise sufficient funds or on commercially acceptable terms, we may have to significantly reduce our spending, delay or cancel our planned activities, or substantially change our corporate structure. Further, if we are unable to obtain funding in a timely manner, we may not be able to meet our payment obligations under existing or future credit facilities and we may be in default under the agreement governing such indebtedness, which in turn may constitute a default under agreements governing our other indebtedness.

In addition, our future capital needs and other business reasons could require us to issue additional equity or debt securities or obtain a credit facility. The issuance of additional equity or equity-linked securities could dilute our shareholders’ interests. The incurrence of indebtedness would result in an increase in debt service obligations and could result in operating and financing covenants that would restrict our operations or our ability to pay dividends to our shareholders.

Our operations had been and may continue to be adversely affected by the COVID-19 pandemic.

Since early 2020, the outbreak of a novel strain of coronavirus named COVID-19 had materially and adversely affected the global economy. In response, government authorities around the world imposed widespread lockdowns, closure of work places, and restrictions on mobility and travel to contain the spread of the virus. We primarily operate in China with offices and operations spread globally, including in the Southeast Asia and Europe, and our business had been affected by the COVID-19 pandemic. For example, the spread of COVID-19 has reduced consumer demand and disrupted the supply chain of the automotive industry in general. COVID-19 also resulted in, and may continue to result in, significant disruption to global financial markets. We took a series of measures to protect our employees, including temporarily closing our offices, facilitating remote working arrangements for our employees, and canceling business meetings and travel.

Starting in December 2022, most of the travel restrictions and quarantine requirements in China were lifted. Although there were significant surges of COVID-19 infections in various regions in China during that month, the situation has been significantly improved and normalized since January 2023. There remains uncertainty as to the future impact of the virus. The extent to which the pandemic affects our results of operations going forward will depend on future developments that are highly uncertain and unpredictable, including the frequency, duration, and extent of COVID-19 outbreaks, the appearance of new variants with different characteristics, the effectiveness of efforts to contain or treat cases, and future actions that may be taken in response to these developments. China may experience lower domestic consumption, higher unemployment, severe disruptions to exporting of goods to other countries and greater economic uncertainty, which may materially and adversely affect our business. There can be no assurance as to whether the COVID-19 pandemic and the resulting disruption to our business will extend over a prolonged period, and if yes, it could materially and adversely affect our business, financial condition, and results of operations.

We are subject to risks relating to the Restructuring.

Historically, we conducted our operation in mainland China through our subsidiaries in mainland China as well as through Hubei ECARX, our former consolidated VIE based in mainland China. Since early 2022, we have implemented the Restructuring and in connection therewith, we, Hubei ECARX and

 

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shareholders of Hubei ECARX entered into a VIE Termination Agreement in April 2022, pursuant to which, the VIE Agreements were terminated with immediate effect; in addition, as agreed between ECARX (Hubei) Tech, a wholly-owned mainland China subsidiary of ECARX, and Hubei ECARX (i) all of Hubei ECARX’s assets and related liabilities, contracts, intellectual properties and employees should be transferred to ECARX (Hubei) Tech and its subsidiaries, with certain exclusion which were inconsequential to our operations in 2020 and 2021 and which we believe will not subsequently have any material impact on our business operations or financial results, such as businesses and assets relating to surveying and mapping services, ICP businesses, and certain retained investments; (ii) all of Hubei ECARX’s businesses should be assumed and undertaken by ECARX (Hubei) Tech save for certain business activities that will continue to be undertaken by Hubei ECARX which were inconsequential to our operations in 2020 and 2021 and which we believe will not subsequently have any material impact on our business operations or financial results. As of the date of this prospectus, the Restructuring has been completed and we do not have any VIE in China. See “Prospectus Summary — Our Corporate Structure.”

We are subject to several risks associated with the Restructuring. We may further experience a loss of continuity, loss of accumulated knowledge or loss of efficiency in connection with the Restructuring.

We may not be able to realize the potential financial or strategic benefits of business ventures, acquisitions or strategic investments and we may not be able to successfully integrate acquisition targets, which could impact our ability to grow our business, develop new products or sell our products.

We have completed a number of acquisitions and strategic long-term investments in recent years, such as our additional investment in JICA Intelligent, and we expect to continue to acquire and invest in other businesses that offer products, services, and technologies that we believe will help expand or enhance our existing products, strategic objectives, and business. While we believe that such transactions are an integral part of our long-term strategy, there are risks and uncertainties related to these activities, which could impair our ability to grow our business and have an adverse effect on our results of operations and financial conditions. Given that our resources are limited, the decision to pursue business ventures, acquisitions, and strategic alliances has opportunity costs. Accordingly, if we pursue a particular transaction, we may need to forgo the prospect of entering into other transactions that could help us achieve our strategic objectives. Additional risks related to business ventures, acquisitions, or strategic investments include, but are not limited to:

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difficulty in combining the technology, products, operations, or workforce of the acquired business with our business;

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diversion of capital and other resources, including management’s attention;

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assumption of liabilities and incurring amortization expenses, impairment charges to goodwill or write-downs of acquired assets;

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integrating financial forecasting and controls, procedures, and reporting cycles;

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coordinating and integrating operations in countries in which we have not previously operated;

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acquiring business challenges and risks, including, but not limited to, disputes with management and integrating international operations and joint ventures;

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difficulty in realizing a satisfactory return, if at all;

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difficulty in obtaining or inability to obtain governmental and regulatory consents and approvals, and other approvals or financing;

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potential failure in complying with governmental or regulatory restrictions placed on acquisitions;

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failure and costs associated with the failure to consummate a proposed acquisition or other strategic investment;

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legal proceedings initiated as a result of an acquisition or investment;

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the potential for our acquisitions to result in dilutive issuances of our equity securities;

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the potential variability of the amount and form of any performance-based consideration;

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uncertainties and time needed to realize the benefits of an acquisition or strategic investment, if at all;

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negative changes in general economic conditions in the regions or the industries in which we or our target operate;

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the need to determine an alternative strategy if an acquisition does not meet our expectations; and

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potential failure of our due diligence processes to identify significant issues with the acquired assets or company; and impairment of relationships with, or loss of our or our target’s employees, vendors, and customers, as a result of our acquisition or investment.

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We may incur material losses and costs as a result of warranty claims, product recalls, and product liabilities that may be brought against us.

We face an inherent business risk of exposure to warranty claims and product liability in the event that our products fail to perform as expected and, in the case of product liability, such failure of our products results in bodily injury or property damage. The fabrication process of our products is complex and precise. Our customers specify quality, performance, and reliability standards. If flaws in either the design or manufacture of our products were to occur, we could experience a rate of failure in our products that could result in significant delays in delivery and product re-work or replacement costs. Although we engage in extensive product quality programs and processes, these may not be sufficient to avoid product failures, which could cause us to:

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lose revenue;

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incur increased costs such as warranty expense and costs associated with customer support;

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experience delays, cancellations, or rescheduling of orders for our products;

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experience increased product returns or discounts; or

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damage our reputation.

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All of these could adversely affect our financial condition and results of operations.

If any of our products are or are alleged to be defective, we may be required to participate in a recall involving such products. A recall claim brought against us, or a product liability claim brought against us in excess of our available insurance, may have a material adverse effect on our business.

Our business is subject to complex and evolving laws and regulations regarding cybersecurity, privacy, data protection and information security in China and elsewhere. Any privacy or data security breach or any failure to comply with these laws and regulations could damage our reputation and brand, result in negative publicity, legal proceedings, increased cost of operations, warnings, fines, service or business suspension, or otherwise harm our business and results of operations.

Our product and service offerings involve the collection, storage, and transmission of data and we face significant challenges with respect to cybersecurity, privacy, data protection, and information security amid a complex and evolving regulatory framework in China and other geographies that we operate in.

Information stored on our systems may be targeted in cyber-attacks, including computer viruses, worms, phishing attacks, malicious software programs, and other information security breaches, which could result in the unauthorized release, gathering, monitoring, misuse, loss, or destruction of such information. If cybercriminals are able to circumvent our security measures, or if we are unable to detect and prevent an intrusion into our systems, data stored with us may be compromised and susceptible to unauthorized access, use, disclosure, disruption, modification, or destruction, which could subject us to liabilities, fines, and other penalties. Additionally, if any of our employees accesses, converts, or misuses any sensitive information, we could be liable for damages, and our business reputation could be damaged or destroyed. Any actual or perceived breach of our security could damage our reputation, cause existing customers to discontinue the use of our products and services, prevent us from attracting new customers, or subject us to third-party lawsuits, regulatory fines, or other actions or liabilities, any of which could materially and adversely affect our business, financial condition, and results of operations.

 

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We have adopted strict information security policies and deployed advanced security measures to comply with applicable requirements and to prevent data loss and other security breaches, including, among others, advanced encryption technologies. Nonetheless, these measures could be breached as a result of third-party action, employee error, third-party or employee malfeasance, or otherwise. Because the techniques used to obtain unauthorized access or to sabotage systems change frequently, we may not be able to anticipate these techniques and implement adequate preventative or protective measures.

We are subject to a multitude of laws and regulations that aim to address information security, privacy, and the collection, storage, sharing, use, disclosure, and protection of data in various jurisdictions. Specifically, our operations in China are subject to a variety of PRC laws and regulations covering cybersecurity, privacy, data protection, and information security, including, among others, the PRC National Security Law, the PRC Cyber Security Law, the PRC Personal Information Protection Law, the PRC Data Security Law, the Regulations on Security Protection of Critical Information Infrastructure, the revised Measures for Cybersecurity Review, the Several Provisions on Automobile Data Security Management (for Trial Implementation), the Measures for the Administration of Data Security in the Field of Industry and Information Technology (for Trial Implementation), the Measures for Security Assessment of Cross-Border Data Transmission. Such PRC laws and regulations were promulgated by PRC government authorities in recent years and impose higher compliance requirements on internet service providers and other network operators, such as in respect of the purposes, methods and scope of information collection and the use of information, acquisition of appropriate user consent, establishment of user information protection systems, and protection of national security. In practice, the PRC government authorities have recently heightened their supervision on the protection of data security by initiating investigations on certain PRC companies regarding their cybersecurity and use of personal information and data. Given the novelty of these laws and regulations, there are substantial uncertainties with respect to their interpretation and implementation and additional laws and regulations on this subject may be promulgated in the future, which may impose further requirements on us. We cannot assure you that we will or will continue to be in compliance with all regulatory requirements that will be imposed on us, and we may be faced with additional compliance costs, increased obligations, and potential liability and negative publicity for non-compliance.

On July 30, 2021, the State Council promulgated the Regulations on Security Protection of Critical Information Infrastructure, which took effect on September 1, 2021. It clarifies that, among others, the competent government authorities of certain important industries are authorized to make rules for and administer the identification of critical information infrastructure and promptly notify the critical information infrastructure operators and the public security authorities of the State Council of the results thereof. On December 28, 2021, the CAC and certain other PRC government authorities promulgated the revised Measures for Cybersecurity Review, or the Revised Measures for Cybersecurity Review, which came into effective on February 15, 2022 and replaced the Measures for Cybersecurity Review promulgated in April 2020. Pursuant to the Revised Measures for Cybersecurity Review, in addition to critical information infrastructure operators purchasing network products or services that affect or may affect national security, any online platform operator conducting data processing activities that affect or may affect national security should also be subject to a cybersecurity review. The Office of Cybersecurity Review may initiate a cybersecurity review at its own discretion pursuant to applicable procedures in accordance with the Revised Measures for Cybersecurity Review. The PRC government authorities may further enact detailed rules or issue guidance with respect to the interpretation and implementation of these rules and regulations, including rules on the identification of critical information infrastructure and the exact definition of “online platform operator.” As such, it remains uncertain whether we or other operators we provide network products and services to may be identified as critical information infrastructure operators or online platform operators. If we provide or are deemed to be providing network products and services to critical information infrastructure operators, or if we are deemed to be a critical information infrastructure operator, we would be required to follow the relevant cybersecurity review procedures, and additional obligations may also be imposed on us with respect to the protection of critical information infrastructure according to the Cyber Security Law. If we are identified as an online platform operator and our data processing activities are considered to be affecting or may affect national security, we might be subject to a cybersecurity review. Because the Revised Measures for Cybersecurity Review do not define “online platform operator” or clarify the meaning of “affect or may affect national security,” and given the PRC government authority’s discretion to initiate a cybersecurity review, it is possible that we would be subject to an ex officio cybersecurity review. Such review, if undertaken, could result in certain disruptions to our operations, negative publicity

 

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with respect to us and diversion of our managerial and financial resources. Failure to complete the cybersecurity review could result in penalties such as fines, suspension of business, shutdown of websites, and revocation of business licenses and permits, any of which could materially and adversely affect our business, financial condition, and results of operations.

For a comprehensive discussion on the aforementioned laws and regulations, see “Government Regulations — Regulation on Cyber Security and Privacy Protection.”

In response to the tightening of regulatory framework in China governing data security, cybersecurity, and privacy, in September 2021 we initiated an internal process to transfer the rights of our mainland China subsidiaries and Hubei ECARX to access and process personal data relevant to their respective business operations to Zhejiang Huanfu Technology Co., Ltd., or Zhejiang Huanfu. The transfer was completed in December 2021 and as of the date of this document, our mainland China subsidiaries do not have any right to access or process any personal data other than certain employee personal data and certain vehicle identification numbers provided by OEMs in association with our provision of maintenance and repair services. In January 2022, we entered into a procurement framework agreement with Zhejiang Huanfu and concluded several procurement-related contracts pursuant to the procurement framework agreement for the sole purpose of contracting Zhejiang Huanfu to discharge our outstanding obligations to provide certain data-related services to our customers. As of the date of this prospectus, we have not been informed that we are a critical information infrastructure operator or a data processor conducting data processing activities that affect or may affect national security by any government authority, but it is uncertain whether we would be categorized as such under the PRC law. As of the date of this prospectus, we have not been involved in any investigations or cybersecurity review by the CAC and we have not received any official inquiry, notice, warning, or sanctions in this respect. We cannot rule out the possibility that the foregoing measures may be enacted, interpreted, or implemented in ways that will adversely affect us. We cannot assure you that we would be able to accomplish any review (including the cybersecurity review), obtain any approval, complete any procedures, or comply with any other requirements applicable to us in a timely manner, or at all, if we are subject to the same. In the event of non-compliance, we may be subject to government investigations and enforcement actions, fines, penalties, and suspension of our noncompliant operations, among other sanctions, which could materially and adversely affect our business, financial condition, and results of operations.

We expect that PRC operations in the areas referenced above will receive greater public scrutiny and attention from regulators and more frequent and rigid investigation or review by regulators, which will increase our compliance costs and subject us to heightened risks. We are closely monitoring the development in the regulatory landscape and we are constantly in the process of evaluating the potential impact of the Cyber Security Law, the Civil Code, the Data Security Law, the Personal Information Protection Law, and other relevant laws and regulations on our current business practices. It remains uncertain whether any future regulatory changes would impose additional restrictions on companies like us. If further changes to our business practices are required under the evolving regulatory framework governing cybersecurity, information security, privacy, and data protection in China, our business, financial condition, and results of operations may be materially and adversely affected.

Aside from our operations in China, we are also required to comply with increasingly complex and rigorous regulatory standards enacted to protect business and personal data in the United States, Europe, and elsewhere. For example, the European Union adopted the General Data Protection Regulation, or the GDPR, which took effect on May 25, 2018. The GDPR imposes additional obligations on companies regarding the handling of personal data and provides certain individual privacy rights to persons whose data is stored.

We generally comply with industry standards and are subject to the terms of our own privacy policies. We have incurred, and will continue to incur, significant expenses in an effort to comply with privacy, data protection, and information security standards and protocols imposed by laws, regulations, industry standards, or contractual obligations. Changes in existing laws or regulations or adoption of new laws and regulations relating to privacy, data protection, and information security, particularly any new or amended laws or regulations that require enhanced protection for certain types of data or new obligations with regard to data retention, transmission, or disclosure, could greatly increase our cost in providing our service offerings, require significant changes to our operations, or even prevent us from offering certain services in jurisdictions

 

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in which we currently operate or in which we may operate in the future. Compliance with these laws and regulations could cause us to incur substantial costs, and may place restrictions on the conduct of our business and the manner in which we interact with our customers or require us to change our business practices, including our data practices, in a manner adverse to our business. Despite our efforts to comply with applicable laws, regulations, and other obligations relating to cybersecurity, privacy, data protection, and information security, it is possible that our practices, offerings, services, or platform could fail to meet all of the requirements imposed on us by such laws, regulations, or obligations. We cannot assure you that we are or will be able to comply with such laws and regulations regarding cybersecurity, privacy, data protection, and information security in all respects and any failure or perceived failure to comply with the same may result in inquiries or other proceedings being instituted against, or other actions, decisions, or sanctions being imposed on us by government authorities, consumers, or other parties, including warnings, fines, penalties, directions for rectifications, service suspension, or removal of our application from application stores, as well as in negative publicity on us and damage to our reputation, any of which could cause us to lose customers and business partners and materially and adversely affect our business, financial condition, and results of operations.

We may be subject to anti-corruption, anti-bribery, anti-money laundering, financial and economic sanctions, and similar laws, and noncompliance with such laws can subject us to administrative, civil, and criminal penalties, collateral consequences, remedial measures, and legal expenses, all of which could adversely affect our business, results of operations, financial condition, and reputation.

We may be subject to anti-corruption, anti-bribery, anti-money laundering, financial and economic sanctions, and similar laws and regulations in various jurisdictions in which we conduct activities, including the U.S. Foreign Corrupt Practices Act, or FCPA, and other anti-corruption laws and regulations. The FCPA prohibits us and our officers, directors, employees, and business partners acting on our behalf, including agents, from corruptly offering, promising, authorizing, or providing anything of value to a “foreign official” for the purposes of influencing official decisions or obtaining or retaining business or otherwise obtaining favorable treatment. The FCPA also requires companies to make and keep books, records, and accounts that accurately reflect transactions and dispositions of assets and to maintain a system of adequate internal accounting controls. A violation of these laws or regulations could adversely affect our business, reputation, financial condition, and results of operations.

We have direct or indirect interactions with officials and employees of government agencies and state-owned affiliated entities in the ordinary course of business. We also have business collaborations with government agencies and state-owned affiliated entities. These interactions subject us to an increasing level of compliance-related concerns. We are in the process of implementing policies and procedures designed to ensure compliance by us and our directors, officers, employees, consultants, agents, and business partners with applicable anti-corruption, anti-bribery, anti-money laundering, financial and economic sanctions, and similar laws and regulations. However, our policies and procedures may not be sufficient and our directors, officers, employees, consultants, agents, and business partners could engage in improper conduct for which we may be held responsible.

Non-compliance with anti-corruption, anti-bribery, anti-money laundering, or financial and economic sanctions laws could subject us to whistleblower complaints, adverse media coverage, investigations, and severe administrative, civil and criminal sanctions, collateral consequences, remedial measures, and legal expenses, all of which could materially and adversely affect our business, reputation, financial condition, and results of operations.

We have limited insurance coverage, which could expose us to significant costs and business disruption.

We have limited liability insurance coverage for our products, services, and business operations. A successful liability claim against us, regardless of whether due to injuries suffered by our users could materially and adversely affect our financial condition, results of operations, and reputation. In addition, we do not have business disruption insurance. Any business disruption event could result in substantial cost to us and diversion of our resources.

 

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Our business depends substantially on the continued efforts of our executive officers, key employees and qualified personnel, and our operations may be severely disrupted if we lose their services.

Our success depends substantially on the continued efforts of our executive officers and key employees with expertise in various areas, who have and may in the future assume roles and positions in our affiliated entities or other business entities and may, as a result, not be able to devote their full efforts to our affairs. If one or more of our executive officers or key employees were unable or unwilling to continue their services with us, we may not be able to replace them easily in a timely manner, or at all. As we build up our brand awareness and become more well-known, the risk that competitors or other companies may poach our talent increases.

Our industry is characterized by high demand and intense competition for talent, in particular with respect to qualified talent in the areas of automotive intelligence technologies, and therefore, we cannot assure you that we will be able to continue to attract or retain qualified staff or other highly skilled employees. In addition, because we are operating in a new and challenging industry that requires continuous innovations of technologies and solutions, we may not be able to hire qualified individuals with sufficient trainings in a timely manner, and we will need to spend significant time and resources training the employees we hire. We also require sufficient talent in areas such as software development. Furthermore, as our company is relatively young, our ability to train and integrate new employees into our operations may not meet the growing demands of our business, which may materially and adversely affect our ability to grow our business and our results of operations.

If any of our executive officers and key employees terminates his or her services with us, our business may be severely disrupted, our financial condition and results of operations may be materially and adversely affected, and we may incur additional expenses to recruit, train, and retain qualified personnel. If any of our executive officers or key employees joins a competitor or forms a competing company, we may lose customers, know-how, and key professionals and staff members. While our executive officers and key employees have entered into an employment agreements and non-compete agreements with us, if any dispute arises between our executive officers or key employees and us, the relevant non-competition provisions may not be enforceable, especially under PRC laws, on the ground that we have not provided adequate compensation to them for their non-competition obligations.

We may not succeed in continuing to establish, maintain, and strengthen our brand, and our brand and reputation could be harmed by negative publicity with respect to us, our directors, officers, employees, shareholders, peers, business partners, or our industry in general.

Our business and prospects are affected by our ability to develop, maintain, and strengthen our brand. If we fail to do so we may lose the opportunity to build business relationships with critical customers. Promoting and positioning our brand will depend significantly on our ability to provide innovative and high-quality products and services, in which we have limited experience. In addition, we expect that our ability to develop, maintain, and strengthen the brand will depend heavily on the success of our branding efforts. We market our brand through media, word-of-mouth, trade shows, and advertising. Such efforts may not achieve the desired results. If we do not develop and maintain a strong brand, our business, financial condition, results of operations, and prospects will be materially and adversely affected.

Our reputation and brand are vulnerable to many threats that can be difficult or impossible to predict, control, and costly or impossible to remediate. From time to time, our products and our business operations in general are reviewed by media or other third parties. Any negative reviews or reviews that compare us unfavorably to competitors could adversely affect public perception about our products. Negative publicity about us, such as alleged misconduct, unethical business practices or other improper activities, or rumors relating to our business, directors, officers, employees, shareholders, affiliates or actual or potential business partners can harm our reputation, business, and results of operations, even if they are baseless or satisfactorily addressed. These allegations, even if unproven or meritless, may lead to inquiries, investigations, or other legal actions against us by regulatory or government authorities as well as private parties. Any regulatory inquiries or investigations and lawsuits against us, perceptions of inappropriate business conduct by us, or perceived wrongdoings by any member of our management team, among other things, could substantially damage our reputation, and cause us to incur significant costs to defend ourselves. Any negative market perception or publicity regarding our suppliers or other business partners that we closely cooperate with

 

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or may cooperate with, or any regulatory inquiries or investigations and lawsuits initiated against them, may also have an adverse effect on our brand and reputation, or subject us to regulatory inquiries or investigations or lawsuits. Moreover, any negative media publicity about the automotive intelligence technologies, especially the autonomous driving technologies, or product or service quality problems of other players in the industry in which we operate, including our competitors, may also adversely affect our reputation and brand. In particular, given the popularity of social media, including Weixin and Weibo in China, any negative publicity, whether true or not, could quickly proliferate and harm customer and user perceptions and confidence in our brand. If we are unable to maintain a good reputation or further enhance our brand recognition, our ability to attract and retain customers, third-party partners, and key employees could be harmed and, as a result, our business, financial condition, and results of operations could be materially and adversely affected.

We have granted, and may continue to grant options and other types of awards under our share incentive plan, which may result in increased share-based compensation expenses.

We have adopted the 2019 Share Incentive Plan, the 2021 Option Incentive Plan, and the 2022 Share Incentive Plan. For the years ended December 31, 2020, 2021, and 2022 and for the six months ended June 30, 2023, we recorded RMB11.4 million, RMB179.9 million, RMB725.7 million (US$100.1 million), and RMB 52.2 million (US$ 7.2 million) in share-based compensation expenses, respectively.

We believe the granting of share-based compensation is of significant importance to our ability to attract and retain key personnel and employees, and as such, we will continue to grant share-based compensation and incur share-based compensation expenses in the future. As a result, expenses associated with share-based compensation may increase, which may have an adverse effect on our financial condition and results of operations.

Our revenues and financial results may be adversely affected by any economic slowdown in China as well as globally.

The success of our business ultimately depends on consumer spending. We derive substantially all of our revenues from China. As a result, our revenues and financial results are impacted to a significant extent by economic conditions in China and globally. The global macroeconomic environment is facing numerous challenges. The growth rate of the Chinese economy has gradually slowed since 2010 and the trend may continue. Any slowdown could significantly reduce domestic commerce in China. In addition, there is considerable uncertainty over the long-term effects of the expansionary monetary and fiscal policies adopted by the central banks and financial authorities of some of the world’s leading economies, including the United States and China. Unrest, terrorist threats and the potential for war in the Middle East and elsewhere may increase market volatility across the globe. There have also been concerns about the relationship between China and other countries, including the surrounding Asian countries, which may potentially have economic effects. In particular, there is significant uncertainty about the future relationship between the United States and China with respect to trade policies, treaties, government regulations and tariffs. Economic conditions in China are sensitive to global economic conditions, as well as changes in domestic economic and political policies and the expected or perceived overall economic growth rate in China. Any severe or prolonged slowdown in the global or Chinese economy may materially and adversely affect our business, results of operations and financial condition.

Sales of our products and services depend in part on discretionary consumer spending and are even more exposed to adverse changes in general economic conditions. In response to consumers’ perceived uncertainty in economic conditions, customers might delay, reduce, or cancel purchases of our products and our results of operations may be materially and adversely affected.

Heightened tensions in international relations, particularly between the United States and China, may adversely impact our business, financial condition, and results of operations.

Recently there have been heightened tensions in international relations, particularly between the United States and China, but also as a result of the conflict in Ukraine and sanctions on Russia. These tensions have affected both diplomatic and economic ties between the two countries. Heightened tensions could reduce levels of trade, investments, technological exchanges, and other economic activities between the two major

 

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economies. The existing tensions and any further deterioration in the relationship between the United States and China may have a negative impact on the general, economic, political, and social conditions in both countries and, given our reliance on the Chinese market, adversely impact our business, financial condition, and results of operations.

Natural disasters, terrorist activities, political unrest, and other outbreaks could disrupt our production, delivery, and operations, which could materially and adversely affect our business, financial condition, and results of operations.

Global pandemics, epidemics in China or elsewhere in the world, or fear of spread of contagious diseases, such as Ebola virus disease, Middle East respiratory syndrome, severe acute respiratory syndrome, H1N1 flu, H7N9 flu, and avian flu, as well as hurricanes, earthquakes, tsunamis, or other natural disasters could disrupt our business operations, reduce or restrict our supply of materials and services, incur significant costs to protect our employees and facilities, or result in regional or global economic distress, which may materially and adversely affect our business, financial condition, and results of operations. Actual or threatened war, terrorist activities, political unrest, civil strife, and other geopolitical uncertainty could have a similar adverse effect on our business, financial condition, and results of operations. Any one or more of these events may impede our production and delivery efforts and adversely affect our sales results, or even for a prolonged period of time, which could materially and adversely affect our business, financial condition, and results of operations.

We are also vulnerable to natural disasters and other calamities. Although we have servers that are hosted in an offsite location, our backup system does not capture data on a real-time basis and we may be unable to recover certain data in the event of a server failure. We cannot assure you that any backup systems will be adequate to protect us from the effects of fire, floods, typhoons, earthquakes, power loss, telecommunications failures, break-ins, war, riots, terrorist attacks, or similar events. Any of the foregoing events may give rise to interruptions, damage to our property, delays in production, breakdowns, system failures, technology platform failures, or internet failures, which could cause the loss or corruption of data or malfunctions of software or hardware as well as adversely affect our business, financial condition, and results of operations.

Unexpected termination of leases, failure to renew the lease of our existing premises or to renew such leases at acceptable terms could materially and adversely affect our business.

We lease the premises for research and development, delivery and servicing centers, and offices. We cannot assure you that we would be able to renew the relevant lease agreements without substantial additional cost or increase in the rental cost payable by us. If a lease agreement is renewed at a rent substantially higher than the current rate, or currently existing favorable terms granted by the lessor are not extended, our business and results of operations may be adversely affected.

In connection with the audit of our consolidated financial statements included in our annual report, we and our independent registered public accounting firm identified one material weakness in our internal control over financial reporting.

In connection with the audit of our consolidated financial statements as of and for the year ended December 31, 2022, we and our independent registered public accounting firm identified one material weakness in our internal control over financial reporting. The material weakness identified relates to the lack of policies, procedures and controls over material non-routine transactions relating to share-based compensation, certain employee benefits and related income tax effects. Following the identification of the material weakness, we have taken measures and plan to continue to take measures to remedy this material weakness. See “Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operation — Internal Control Over Financial Reporting.” However, we cannot assure you that the implementation of these measures will be sufficient to eliminate such material weakness, or that material weaknesses in our internal control over financial reporting will not be identified in the future. Our failure to correct this material weakness or our failure to discover and address any other material weaknesses or significant deficiencies could result in inaccuracies in our financial statements and impair our ability to comply with applicable financial reporting

 

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requirements and related regulatory filings on a timely basis. Moreover, ineffective internal control over financial reporting could significantly hinder our ability to prevent fraud.

Following the completion of the Business Combination, we have become a public company in the United States and subject to the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002. Section 404 of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002, or Section 404, will require that we include a report from management on our internal control over financial reporting in our annual report on Form 20-F beginning with our annual report for the fiscal year ending December 31, 2023. In addition, once we cease to be an “emerging growth company” as such term is defined in the JOBS Act, our independent registered public accounting firm must attest to and report on the effectiveness of our internal control over financial reporting. Our management may conclude that our internal control over financial reporting is not effective. Moreover, even if our management concludes that our internal control over financial reporting is effective, our independent registered public accounting firm, after conducting its own independent testing, may issue a report that is qualified if it is not satisfied with our internal controls or the level at which our controls are documented, designed, operated, or reviewed, or if it interprets the relevant requirements differently from us. In addition, because we are a public company, our reporting obligations may place a significant strain on our management, operational and financial resources and systems for the foreseeable future. We may be unable to timely complete our evaluation testing and any required remediation.

During the course of documenting and testing our internal control procedures, in order to satisfy the requirements of Section 404, we may identify other or more material weaknesses or deficiencies in our internal control over financial reporting. In addition, if we fail to maintain the adequacy of our internal control over financial reporting, as these standards are modified, supplemented, or amended from time to time, we may not be able to conclude on an ongoing basis that we have effective internal control over financial reporting in accordance with Section 404. Generally speaking, if we fail to achieve and maintain an effective internal control environment, we could suffer material misstatements in our financial statements and fail to meet our reporting obligations, which would likely cause investors to lose confidence in our reported financial information. This could in turn limit our access to capital markets, harm our results of operations and lead to a decline in the trading price of our securities. Additionally, ineffective internal control over financial reporting could expose us to increased risk of fraud or misuse of corporate assets and subject us to potential delisting from the stock exchange on which we list, regulatory investigations, and civil or criminal sanctions.

We may need to defend ourselves against intellectual property right infringement claims, which may be time-consuming and would cause us to incur substantial costs.

Entities or individuals, including our competitors, may hold or obtain patents, copyrights, trademarks, or other proprietary rights that would prevent, limit, or interfere with our ability to make, use, develop, sell, or market our products, services, or technologies, which could make it more difficult for us to operate our business. From time to time, we may receive communications from intellectual property right holders regarding their proprietary rights. Companies holding patents or other intellectual property rights may bring suits alleging infringement of such rights or otherwise assert their rights and urge us to take licenses. Our applications and uses of intellectual property relating to our design, software, or technologies could be found to infringe upon existing intellectual property rights. If we are determined to have infringed upon a third party’s intellectual property rights, we may be required to do one or more of the following:

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cease selling or incorporating certain components into our products or services, or offering products or services that incorporate or use the challenged intellectual property;

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pay substantial damages;

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seek a license from the holder of the infringed intellectual property right, which may not be available on reasonable terms or at all;

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redesign our products; or

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establish and maintain alternative branding for our products and services.

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In the event of a successful claim of infringement against us and our subsequent failure or inability to obtain a license for the infringed technology or other intellectual property right, our business, financial condition, results of operations, and prospects could be materially and adversely affected. In addition, parties

 

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making the infringement claim may also obtain an injunction that can prevent us from selling our products or using technology that contains the allegedly infringing contents. Any litigation or claims, whether or not valid, could result in substantial costs, negative publicity, and diversion of resources and management attention.

We may not be able to prevent others from unauthorized use of our intellectual property, which could harm our business and competitive position.

We regard our trademarks, service marks, patents, domain names, trade secrets, proprietary technologies, and similar intellectual property as critical to our success. We rely on trademark and patent law, trade secret protection, and confidentiality and license agreements with our employees and others to protect our proprietary rights. We have invested significant resources to develop our own intellectual property. Failure to maintain or protect these rights could harm our business. In addition, any unauthorized use of our intellectual property by third parties may adversely affect our current and future revenues and our reputation.

Implementation and enforcement of laws in mainland China relating to intellectual property have historically been deficient and ineffective. Accordingly, protection of intellectual property rights in mainland China may not be as effective as in the United States or other developed countries. Furthermore, policing unauthorized use of proprietary technology is difficult and expensive. We rely on a combination of patent, copyright, trademark, and trade secret laws and restrictions on disclosure to protect our intellectual property rights. Despite our efforts to protect our proprietary rights, third parties may attempt to copy or otherwise obtain and use our intellectual property or seek court declarations that they do not infringe upon our intellectual property rights. Monitoring unauthorized use of our intellectual property is difficult and costly, and we cannot assure you that the steps we have taken or will take will prevent misappropriation of our intellectual property. From time to time, we may have to resort to litigation to enforce our intellectual property rights, which could result in substantial costs and diversion of our resources.

As our patents may expire and may not be extended, our patent applications may not be granted, and our patent rights may be contested, circumvented, invalidated, or limited in scope, our patent rights may not protect us effectively. In particular, we may not be able to prevent others from developing or exploiting competing technologies, which could materially and adversely affect our business, financial condition, and results of operations.

As of June 30, 2023, we had 513 registered patents and 453 pending patent applications globally. We cannot assure you that all our pending patent applications will result in issued patents. Even if our patent applications are granted and we are issued patents accordingly, it is still uncertain whether these patents will be contested, circumvented, or invalidated in the future. In addition, the rights granted under any issued patents may not provide us with meaningful protection or competitive advantages. The claims under any patents may not be broad enough to prevent others from developing technologies that are similar or that achieve results similar to ours. It is also possible that the intellectual property rights of others could bar us from licensing and exploiting our patents. Numerous patents and pending patent applications owned by others exist in the fields where we have developed and are developing our technologies. These patents and patent applications might have priority over our patent applications and could subject our patent applications to invalidation. Finally, in addition to those who may claim priority, any of our existing patents or pending patent applications may also be challenged by others on the basis that they are otherwise invalid or unenforceable.

In addition to patented technologies, we rely on our unpatented proprietary technologies, trade secrets, processes, and know-how.

We rely on proprietary information, such as trade secrets, know-how, and confidential information, to protect intellectual property that may not be patentable, or that we believe is best protected by means that do not require public disclosure. We generally seek to protect this proprietary information by entering into confidentiality agreements, or consulting, services, or employment agreements that contain non-disclosure and non-use provisions with our employees, consultants, contractors, scientific advisors, and third parties. However, we cannot guarantee that we have entered into such agreements with every party that has or may have had access to our trade secrets or proprietary information and, even if entered into, these agreements

 

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may be breached or may otherwise fail to prevent disclosure, third-party infringement or misappropriation of our proprietary information, may be limited as to their term and may not provide an adequate remedy in the event of unauthorized disclosure or use of proprietary information. We have limited control over the protection of trade secrets used by our third-party manufacturers and suppliers and could lose future trade secret protection if any unauthorized disclosure of such information occurs. In addition, our proprietary information may otherwise become known or be independently developed by our competitors or other third parties. To the extent that our employees, consultants, contractors, and other third parties use intellectual property owned by others in their work for us, disputes may arise as to the rights in related or resulting know-how and inventions. Costly and time-consuming litigation could be necessary to enforce and determine the scope of our proprietary rights, and failure to obtain or maintain protection for our proprietary information could adversely affect our competitive business position. Furthermore, laws regarding trade secret rights in certain markets where we operate may afford little or no protection to our trade secrets. If any of our trade secrets were to be lawfully obtained or independently developed by a competitor or other third party, we would have no right to prevent them from using that trade secret to compete with us. If any of our trade secrets were to be disclosed, whether lawfully or otherwise, to or independently developed by a competitor or other third party, it could have a material adverse effect on our business, operating results, and financial condition.

We also rely on physical and electronic security measures to protect our proprietary information, but we cannot guarantee that these security measures provide adequate protection for such proprietary information or will never be breached. There is a risk that third parties may obtain unauthorized access to and improperly utilize or disclose our proprietary information, which would harm our competitive advantages. We may not be able to detect or prevent the unauthorized access to or use of our information by third parties, and we may not be able to take appropriate and timely steps to mitigate the damages, or the damages may not be capable of being mitigated or remedied.

We depend on information technology to conduct our business. Any significant disruptions to our information technology systems or facilities, or those of third parties with which we do business, such as disruptions caused by cyber-attacks, could adversely impact our business.

Our ability to keep our business operating effectively depends on the functional and efficient operation of information technology systems and facilities, both internally and externally. We rely on these systems to, among other things, make a variety of day-to-day business decisions as well as to record and process transactions, billings, payments, inventory, and other data, in many currencies, on a daily basis, and across numerous and diverse markets and jurisdictions. Our systems, as well as those of our customers, suppliers, partners, and service providers, also contain sensitive confidential information or intellectual property and are susceptible to interruptions, including those caused by systems failures, cyber-attacks, and other natural or man-made incidents or disasters, which may be prolonged or go undetected. Cyber-attacks, both domestically and abroad, are increasing in their frequency, sophistication, and intensity, and have become increasingly difficult to detect. Although we have and continue to take precautions to prevent, detect, and mitigate such events, a significant or large-scale interruption of our information technology systems or facilities could adversely affect our ability to manage and keep our operations running efficiently and effectively, and could result in significant costs, fines or litigation. An incident that results in a wider or sustained disruption to our business or products could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition, and results of operations.

Additionally, certain of our products contain complex information technology systems designed to support today’s increasingly connected vehicles, and could be susceptible to similar interruptions, including the possibility of unauthorized access. Further, if we are to offer more cloud-based solutions which are dependent on the Internet or other networks to operate, we may increasingly be the target of cyber threats, including computer viruses or breaches due to misconduct of employees, contractors, or others who have access to our networks and systems, or those of third parties with which we do business. Although we have designed and implemented security measures to prevent and detect such unauthorized access or cyber threats from occurring, we cannot assure you that vulnerabilities will not be identified in the future, or that our security efforts will be successful. Any unauthorized access to our components could adversely affect our brand and harm our business, prospects, financial condition, and operating results. Further, maintaining and updating these systems may require significant costs and often involves implementation, integration, and

 

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security risks, including risks that we may not adequately anticipate the market or technological trends or that we may experience unexpected challenges that could cause financial, reputational, and operational harm. However, failing to properly respond to and invest in information technology advancements may limit our ability to attract and retain customers, prevent us from offering similar products and services as those offered by our competitors or inhibit our ability to meet regulatory or other requirements.

To date, we have not experienced any system failure, cyber-attack or security breach that has resulted in a material interruption in our operations or material adverse effect on our financial condition. While we continuously seek to expand and improve our information technology systems and maintain adequate disclosure controls and procedures, we cannot assure you that such measures will prevent interruptions or security breaches that could adversely affect our business.

We use open-source software, which may pose particular risks to our proprietary software and source code. We may face claims from open-source licensors claiming ownership of, or demanding the release of, the intellectual property that we developed using or derived from such open source software.

We use open-source software in our proprietary software and will use open source software in the future. Companies that incorporate open-source software into their proprietary software and products have, from time to time, faced claims challenging the use of open source software and compliance with open source license terms. By the terms of certain open-source licenses, we could be required to release the source code of our proprietary software, and to make our proprietary software available under open source licenses to third parties at no cost, if we combine our proprietary software with open source software in certain manners. Although we monitor our use of open-source software, we cannot assure you that all open source software is reviewed prior to use in our software, that our developers have not incorporated open source software into our proprietary software, or that they will not do so in the future. In addition, companies that incorporate open-source software into their products have, in the past, faced claims seeking enforcement of open source license provisions and claims asserting ownership of open source software incorporated into their proprietary software. If an author or other third party that distributes such open-source software were to allege that we have not complied with the conditions of an open source license, we could incur significant legal costs defending ourselves against such allegations. In the event such claims were successful, we could be subject to significant damages or be enjoined from the distribution of our proprietary software. In addition, the terms of open-source software licenses may require us to provide software that we develop using such open source software to others on unfavorable license terms.

As a result of our current or future use of open-source software, we may face claims or litigation, be required to release our proprietary source code, pay damages for breach of contract, re-engineer our proprietary software, discontinue making our proprietary software available in the event re-engineering cannot be accomplished on a timely basis or take other remedial action. Any such re-engineering or other remedial efforts could require significant additional research and development resources, and we may not be able to successfully complete any such re-engineering or other remedial efforts. Further, in addition to risks related to license requirements, use of certain open-source software can lead to greater risks than use of third-party commercial software, as open source licensors generally do not provide warranties or controls on the origin of the software. Any of these risks could be difficult to eliminate or manage, and, if not addressed, could have a negative effect on our business, financial condition and results of operations.

Risks Relating to Doing Business in China

The PRC government has significant oversight and discretion over our business operations, and it may influence or intervene in our operations as part of its efforts to enforce PRC law, which could result in a material adverse change in our operations and the value of our securities.

A major part of our operations is located in China. The PRC government has significant authority to influence and intervene in the China operations of an offshore holding company like ECARX Holdings at any time. Accordingly, our business, prospects, financial condition, and results of operations may be influenced to a significant degree by political, economic, and social conditions in China generally. The Chinese economy differs from the economies of most developed countries in many respects, including the degree of government involvement, level of development, growth rate, control of foreign exchange and allocation of resources. Although the PRC government has implemented measures to underscore the importance of the

 

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utilization of market forces for economic reform, the divestment of state ownership in productive assets and the establishment of improved corporate governance in business enterprises, a substantial portion of productive assets in mainland China are still owned by the government. In addition, the PRC government continues to play a significant role in regulating industry development by imposing industrial policies. The PRC government also exercises significant control over China’s economic growth through resources allocation, controlling payment of foreign currency-denominated obligations, setting monetary policy and providing preferential treatment to selected industries or companies.

While the Chinese economy has experienced significant growth over the past decades, growth has been uneven, both geographically and among different sectors of the economy. The PRC government has implemented various measures to generate economic growth and guide the allocation of resources. Some of these measures may benefit the Chinese economy overall, but may have a negative effect on us. Any slowdown in the Chinese economy may reduce the demand for our products and services and materially and adversely affect our business and results of operations.

Uncertainties in the PRC legal system and the interpretation and enforcement of PRC laws and regulations could limit the legal protections available to you and us, hinder our ability and the ability of any holder of our securities to offer or continue to offer such securities, result in a material adverse change to our business operations, and damage our reputation, which would materially and adversely affect our financial condition and results of operations and cause our securities to significantly decline in value or become worthless.

The PRC legal system is evolving rapidly and PRC laws, regulations, and rules may change quickly with little or no advance notice. In particular, the legal system in mainland China is based on written statutes, and court decisions have limited precedential value. The interpretations of many laws, regulations, and rules in mainland China are done inconsistently, subjecting the enforcement of the same to a great deal of uncertainties. From time to time, we may have to resort to court and administrative proceedings to enforce our legal rights. However, since the administrative authorities in mainland China have significant discretion in interpreting and implementing statutory and contractual terms, it may be more difficult to predict the outcome of a judicial or administrative proceeding in mainland China. Furthermore, the PRC legal system is, in part, based on government policies and internal rules, some of which are not published in a timely manner, or at all, but which may have retroactive effect. As a result, we may not always be aware of an instance of violation of these policies and rules even after its occurrence. Such unpredictability towards our contractual, property (including intellectual property), and procedural rights could adversely affect our business and impede our ability to continue our operations.

Laws and regulations concerning our industries are also constantly evolving in China and the PRC government authorities may further promulgate new laws and regulations regulating our industries and other businesses we have already engaged in or may further expand into in the future. Although we have taken measures to comply with and avoid violation of applicable laws and regulations, we cannot assure you that our practice is and will remain in full compliance with applicable PRC laws and regulations.

In addition, the PRC government may regulate or intervene in our operations at any time, or may exercise more oversight and control at any time over offerings conducted outside of China and foreign investment in China-based companies. For example, the Opinions on Severely Cracking Down on Illegal Securities Activities issued on July 6, 2021 emphasized the need to strengthen the management over illegal securities activities and the supervision on overseas listings by mainland China-based companies. These opinions propose to take effective measures, such as promoting the establishment of relevant regulatory systems, to deal with the risks and incidents facing mainland China-based overseas-listed companies, and fulfill the demand for cybersecurity and data privacy protection. These opinions and any future related implementation rules may subject us to additional compliance requirement in the future. Official guidance and interpretation of these opinions are absent in several material respects at this time.

Therefore, we cannot assure you that we will remain fully compliant with any new regulatory requirements or any future implementation rules on a timely basis, or at all. Any failure of us to fully comply with applicable laws and regulations may significantly limit or completely hinder our ability and the ability of any holder of our securities to offer or continue to offer such securities, cause significant disruption to our business operations, and severely damage our reputation, which would materially and

 

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adversely affect our financial condition and results of operations and cause our securities to significantly decline in value or become worthless.

The approval of and filing with the CSRC or other PRC government authorities may be required in connection with the Business Combination, our previous offerings, our listing and this offering under PRC law, and, if so required, we cannot predict whether or when we will be able to obtain such approval or complete such filing, and even if we obtain such approval, it could be rescinded.

The Regulations on Mergers and Acquisitions of Domestic Companies by Foreign Investors, or the M&A Rules, issued by six PRC regulatory authorities in 2006 and amended in 2009, requires offshore special purpose vehicles that are controlled by PRC domestic companies or individuals and that have been formed for the purpose of seeking a public listing on an overseas stock exchange through acquisitions of PRC domestic companies or assets to obtain CSRC approval prior to publicly listing their securities on an overseas stock exchange. The interpretation and application of the regulations remain unclear. If the CSRC approval is required retrospectively for the Business Combination or any of our overseas listings or capital raising activities, it is uncertain whether we can or how long it will take us to obtain such approval and, even if we obtain such CSRC approval, such CSRC approval could be rescinded. Any failure to obtain or delay in obtaining the CSRC approval for our overseas listings and capital raising activities if such approval is required, or a rescission of such CSRC approval is obtained by us, would subject us to sanctions imposed by the CSRC or other PRC regulatory authorities, which could include fines and penalties on our operations in China, restrictions or limitations on our ability to pay dividends outside of China, and other forms of sanctions that may materially and adversely affect our business, financial condition, and results of operations.

In addition, the PRC government has recently indicated an intent to exert more oversight and control over overseas offerings by and foreign investment in China-based companies. The Opinions on Severely Cracking Down Illegal Securities Activities promulgated on July 6, 2021 emphasize the need to strengthen cross-border regulatory cooperation and the administration and supervision of China-based companies, and to establish a comprehensive regulatory system for the application of PRC capital market laws and regulations outside China. On February 17, 2023, the CSRC released several regulations regarding the filing requirements for overseas offerings and listings by China-based companies, including the Overseas Listing Filing Rules that took effect on March 31, 2023. According to the Overseas Listing Filing Rules, the issuer or a major domestic operating company designated by the issuer, as the case may be, must make a filing with the CSRC in respect of its initial public offering or listing, follow-on offering, and other equivalent offing activities. According to the Overseas Listing Filing Rules, for an issuer which is already listed, it should make filing in accordance with the Overseas Listing Filing Rules if: (i) it issues additional convertible bonds, exchangeable bonds or preferred shares, (ii) it issues additional securities in the same overseas market, excluding securities issued for the purpose of implementing equity incentive, distribution of stock dividends, share split, etc., (iii) it issues additional securities in several offerings within its authorized scope; or (iv) it conducts a secondary listing or primary listing in any other overseas market. In connection with the Overseas Listing Filing Rules, the CSRC issued the Notice on Administrative Arrangements for the Filing of Overseas Offering and Listing by Domestic Companies on February 17, 2023, which stipulates that China-based companies like us that have completed overseas listings prior to March 31, 2023 are not required to file with the CSRC in accordance with the Overseas Listing Filing Rules immediately, but must follow filing procedures as required if such companies conduct refinancing or if other circumstances arise requiring a filing with the CSRC.

Furthermore, according to the Revised Measures for Cybersecurity Review, any online platform operator (the exact definition of “online platform operator” remains unclear) conducting data processing activities that affect or may affect national security should be subject to a cybersecurity review. On February 24, 2023, the CSRC and several other government authorities jointly issued the Provisions on Strengthening Confidentiality and Archives Administration of Overseas Securities Offering and Listing by Domestic Companies, or the Overseas Listing Archives Rules, which took effect on March 31, 2023. The Overseas Listing Archives Rules apply to both direct and indirect overseas offerings. The Overseas Listing Archives Rules stipulate that, among other things, (i) domestic companies involved in the overseas listing of China-based companies are required to strictly comply with the relevant requirements on confidentiality and archives management, establish a sound confidentiality and archives system, and take necessary measures to implement their confidentiality and archives management responsibilities; (ii) during the course of an

 

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overseas offering or listing, if a domestic company needs to publicly disclose or provide to securities companies, accounting firms, or other securities service providers and overseas regulators, any materials that contain state secrets or that have a sensitive impact (i.e., detrimental to national security or public interest if divulged), the domestic company should complete the relevant approval or filing and other regulatory procedures; and (iii) working papers produced in China by securities companies and securities service providers, which provide domestic companies with securities services during their overseas offering or listing, should be stored in China, and the transmission of any such working papers to recipients outside China must be approved by competent PRC government authorities. As of the date of this document, we have not been involved in any investigations or cybersecurity review initiated by the CAC and we have not received any official inquiry, notice, warning, or sanctions regarding cybersecurity and overseas listing from the CAC, the CSRC, or any other PRC government authorities.

Based on the opinion of our mainland China legal counsel, Han Kun Law Offices, according to its interpretation of the currently in effect laws and regulations in mainland China, we believe that, as of the date of this prospectus, this offering does not require the application or completion of any cybersecurity review or any other permission or approval from government authorities in mainland China including the CSRC.

Substantial uncertainties exist with respect to the interpretation and implementation of the Overseas Listing Filing Rules and laws and regulations relating to data security, privacy, and cybersecurity. In addition, the PRC government authorities have significant discretion in interpreting and implementing statutory provisions in general. In light of the foregoing, we cannot assure you that the relevant PRC government authorities will not take a contrary position or adopt different interpretations than those taken or adopted by us or our legal counsel, or that there will not be changes in the regulatory landscape. In other words, the application and completion of a cybersecurity review and other permissions and approvals from PRC government authorities may be required in connection with the Business Combination, our previous offerings, listing on Nasdaq, or this offering. In addition, the CAC, the CSRC, or other government authorities may subsequently promulgate new rules or issue explanations mandating that we complete filings or obtain approvals, registrations, or other kinds of authorizations for the Business Combination, our past listing and offerings, or this listing and offerings, on a retrospective basis.

If it is determined in the future (including on a retrospective basis) that approval from or filing with the CSRC, the CAC, or other government authorities are required for the Business Combination, our previous offerings, listing on Nasdaq, or this offering, it is uncertain whether we can, or how long it will take us to, obtain such approval or complete such filing procedures and any such approval could be rescinded. In addition, if circumstances arise requiring us to make a filing or reporting, such as additional offshore listings, refinancing, and other capital raising activities conducted by us, or the occurrence of other major events with respect to us, including but not limited to the change of control, investigation, or punishment by overseas securities regulatory authorities or relevant competent authorities, the change of listing status or listing sector, voluntary or forced delisting, and the change of our major business activities, we cannot assure you that we will be able to complete such filing or reporting or fully comply with the relevant rules and requirements in a timely manner, or at all, given the substantial uncertainties surrounding the CSRC filing requirements. For further details, see “Regulations — Regulation on Mergers and Acquisitions and Overseas Listing.” Any failure to obtain or delay in obtaining clearance of such approval or completing such filing procedures for the Business Combination, our previous offerings, listing on Nasdaq, or this offering, or a rescission of any such approval if obtained by us, would subject us to regulatory actions or other sanctions by the CSRC, the CAC, or other PRC government authorities for failure to seek required government authorization in respect of the same. These government authorities may impose fines, restrictions, and penalties on our operations in China, such as revocation of our licenses, or shutdown of part or all of our operations, restriction on our ability to pay dividends outside China, limit on our operating privileges in China, unwinding of the Business Combination, or other actions that could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition, results of operations, and prospects, as well as the trading price of our securities. The PRC government authorities may also take actions requiring us, or making it advisable for us, to suspend our offerings before settlement and delivery. Consequently, if you engage in market trading or other activities in anticipation of and prior to settlement and delivery, you do so at the risk that settlement and delivery may not occur.

 

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If (i) we do not receive or maintain any required permission, or fail to complete any required review or filing, (ii) we inadvertently conclude that such permission, review, or filing is not required, or (iii) applicable laws, regulations, or interpretations change such that it becomes mandatory for us to obtain any permission, review, or filing in the future, we may have to expend significant time and costs to comply with these requirements. If we are unable to do so, on commercially reasonable terms, in a timely manner or otherwise, we may become subject to sanctions imposed by the PRC government authorities, which could include fines and penalties, proceedings against us, and other forms of sanctions, and our ability to conduct our business, invest into China as foreign investments or accept foreign investments, or list on a U.S. or other overseas exchange may be restricted, and our business, reputation, financial condition, and results of operations may be materially and adversely affected. Further, our ability to offer or continue to offer securities to investors may be significantly limited or completely hindered, and the value of our securities may significantly decline and such securities may become worthless.

The PCAOB had historically been unable to inspect our auditor in relation to their audit work performed for our financial statements and the inability of the PCAOB to conduct inspections of our auditor in the past had deprived our investors with the benefits of such inspections.

Our auditor, the independent registered public accounting firm that issues the audit report included elsewhere in this prospectus, as an auditor of companies that are traded publicly in the United States and a firm registered with the PCAOB, is subject to laws in the United States pursuant to which the PCAOB conducts regular inspections to assess its compliance with the applicable professional standards. The auditor is located in mainland China, a jurisdiction where the PCAOB was historically unable to conduct inspections and investigations completely before 2022. As a result, we and investors in our securities were deprived of the benefits of such PCAOB inspections. The inability of the PCAOB to conduct inspections of auditors in mainland China in the past has made it more difficult to evaluate the effectiveness of our independent registered public accounting firm’s audit procedures or quality control procedures as compared to auditors outside of China that are subject to the PCAOB inspections. On December 15, 2022, the PCAOB issued a report that vacated its December 16, 2021 determination and removed mainland China and Hong Kong from the list of jurisdictions where it is unable to inspect or investigate completely registered public accounting firms. However, if the PCAOB determines in the future that it no longer has full access to inspect and investigate completely accounting firms in mainland China and Hong Kong, and we use an accounting firm headquartered in one of these jurisdictions to issue an audit report on our financial statements filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission, we and investors in our securities would be deprived of the benefits of such PCAOB inspections again, which could cause investors and potential investors in our securities to lose confidence in our audit procedures and reported financial information and the quality of our financial statements.

Our securities may be prohibited from trading in the United States under the HFCAA in the future if the PCAOB is unable to inspect or investigate completely auditors located in mainland China and Hong Kong. The delisting of our securities, or the threat of their being delisted, may materially and adversely affect the value of your investment.

Pursuant to the HFCAA, if the SEC determines that we have filed audit reports issued by a registered public accounting firm that has not been subject to inspections by the PCAOB for two consecutive years, the SEC will prohibit our securities from being traded on a national securities exchange or in the over-the-counter trading market in the United States.

On December 16, 2021, the PCAOB issued a report to notify the SEC of its determination that the PCAOB was unable to inspect or investigate completely registered public accounting firms headquartered in mainland China and Hong Kong and our auditor was subject to that determination. On December 15, 2022, the PCAOB removed mainland China and Hong Kong from the list of jurisdictions where it is unable to inspect or investigate completely registered public accounting firms. We have not been and, for the foregoing reason, we do not expect to be identified as a Commission-Identified Issuer under the HFCAA following the filing of our annual report on Form 20-F for the fiscal year ended December 31, 2022 on April 24, 2023.

Each year, the PCAOB will determine whether it can inspect and investigate completely audit firms in mainland China and Hong Kong, among other jurisdictions. If the PCAOB determines in the future that it

 

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no longer has full access to inspect and investigate completely accounting firms in mainland China and Hong Kong and we use an accounting firm headquartered in one of these jurisdictions to issue an audit report on our financial statements filed with the SEC, we would be identified as a Commission-Identified Issuer following the filing of the annual report on Form 20-F for the relevant fiscal year. In accordance with the HFCAA, our securities would be prohibited from being traded on a national securities exchange or in the over-the-counter trading market in the United States if we are identified as a Commission-Identified Issuer for two consecutive years in the future. If our securities are prohibited from trading in the United States, there is no certainty that we will be able to list on a non-U.S. exchange or that a market for our securities will develop outside of the United States. A prohibition of being able to trade in the United States would substantially impair your ability to sell or purchase our securities when you wish to do so, and the risk and uncertainty associated with delisting would have a negative impact on the price of our securities. Also, such a prohibition would significantly affect our ability to raise capital on terms acceptable to us, or at all, which would have a material adverse impact on our business, financial condition, and prospects.

Additional disclosure requirements to be adopted by and regulatory scrutiny from the SEC in response to risks related to companies with substantial operations in China, which could increase our compliance costs, subject us to additional disclosure requirements, and/or suspend or terminate our future securities offerings, making capital-raising more difficult.

On July 30, 2021, in response to the recent regulatory developments in China and actions adopted by the PRC government, the Chairman of the SEC issued a statement asking the SEC staff to seek additional disclosures from offshore issuers associated with China-based operating companies before their registration statements will be declared effective. As such, the offering of our securities may be subject to additional disclosure requirements and review that the SEC or other regulatory authorities in the United States may adopt for companies with China-based operations, which could increase our compliance costs, subject us to additional disclosure requirements, and/or suspend or terminate our future securities offerings, making capital-raising more difficult.

The M&A Rules and certain other PRC regulations establish complex procedures for certain acquisitions of PRC domestic companies, which could make it more difficult for us to pursue growth through acquisitions in China.

A number of PRC laws and regulations have established procedures and requirements that could make merger and acquisition activities in mainland China by foreign investors more time consuming and complex. In addition to the Anti-Monopoly Law itself, these include the M&A Rules, adopted by six PRC regulatory agencies in 2006 and amended in 2009, the Rules of the Ministry of Commerce on Implementation of Security Review System of Mergers and Acquisitions of Domestic Enterprises by Foreign Investors promulgated in 2011, and the Measures for the Security Review of Foreign Investment promulgated by the NDRC and the Ministry of Commerce of the PRC, or the MOFCOM, in December 2020 and came into force on January 18, 2021. These laws and regulations impose requirements in some instances that the MOFCOM be notified in advance of any change-of-control transaction in which a foreign investor takes control of a mainland Chinese company. In addition, pursuant to relevant anti-monopoly laws and regulations, the SAMR should be notified in advance of any concentration of undertaking if certain thresholds are triggered. In light of the uncertainties relating to the interpretation, implementation and enforcement of the anti-monopoly laws and regulations of the PRC, we cannot assure you that the anti-monopoly law enforcement agency will not deem our future acquisitions or investments to have triggered filing requirement for anti-monopoly review. Moreover, mergers and acquisitions by foreign investors that raise “national defense and security” concerns and mergers and acquisitions through which foreign investors may acquire de facto control over PRC domestic companies that raise “national security” concerns are subject to strict review by the NDRC and the MOFCOM, and prohibit any attempt to bypass a security review, including by structuring the transaction through a proxy or contractual control arrangement.

In the future, we may grow our business by acquiring complementary businesses. Complying with the requirements of the relevant regulations to complete such transactions could be time consuming, and any required approval processes, including clearance from the SAMR and approval from the MOFCOM, may delay or inhibit our ability to complete such transactions, which could affect our ability to expand our business or maintain our market share.

 

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Substantial uncertainties exist with respect to the interpretation and implementation of newly enacted 2019 PRC Foreign Investment Law and its Implementation Rules.

On March 15, 2019, the PRC National People’s Congress approved the 2019 PRC Foreign Investment Law, which came into effect on January 1, 2020 and replaced the trio of then existing laws regulating foreign investment in mainland China, namely, the Sino-foreign Equity Joint Venture Enterprise Law, the Sino-foreign Cooperative Joint Venture Enterprise Law, and the Wholly Foreign-invested Enterprise Law, together with their implementation rules and ancillary regulations. On December 26, 2019, the PRC State Council approved the Implementation Rules of Foreign Investment Law, which came into effect on January 1, 2020. The 2019 PRC Foreign Investment Law and its Implementation Rules embody a regulatory trend in mainland China that aims to bring its foreign investment regulatory regime in line with prevailing international practices, and represent the legislative endeavors to unify corporate legal requirements applicable to foreign and domestic investments. However, substantial uncertainties exist with respect to the interpretations and implementations of the 2019 PRC Foreign Investment Law and its Implementation Rules.

The 2019 PRC Foreign Investment Law specifies that foreign investments shall be conducted in line with the “negative list” to be issued by or approved to be issued by the State Council. A foreign invested enterprise would not be allowed to make investments in prohibited industries set out in the “negative list” while a foreign invested enterprise must satisfy certain conditions stipulated in the “negative list” for investment in restricted industries. While our mainland China subsidiaries are not currently subject to foreign investment restrictions as set forth in the presently effective Special Administrative Measures for Entry of Foreign Investment (Negative List) (2021 Version), or the 2021 Negative List, it is uncertain whether any of their business operation will be subject to foreign investment restrictions or prohibitions set forth in the “negative list” to be issued in the future. If any part of our business operation falls in the “negative list” or if the interpretation and implementation of the 2019 PRC Foreign Investment Law and any future “negative list” mandate further actions, such as market entry clearance granted by the MOFCOM, we face uncertainties as to whether such clearance can be timely obtained, or at all. We cannot assure you that the relevant government authorities will not interpret or implement the 2019 PRC Foreign Investment Law in the future in a way that will materially impact the viability of our current corporate governance and business operations.

Regulations in mainland China of loans to and direct investment in PRC domestic companies by offshore holding companies and governmental control of currency conversion may delay or prevent us from making loans to or make additional capital contributions to our mainland China subsidiaries, which could materially and adversely affect our liquidity and our ability to fund and expand our business.

ECARX Holdings is an offshore holding company and we conduct our operations in mainland China primarily through our mainland China subsidiaries. We may make additional capital contributions or loans to our mainland China subsidiaries, which are treated as foreign invested enterprises under the law in mainland China. Any loans by us to our mainland China subsidiaries are subject to regulations and foreign exchange loan registrations of mainland China. For example, with respect to the registration, loans by us to our mainland China subsidiaries to finance their activities must be registered with the relevant local counterpart of the SAFE, or filed with SAFE in its information system; with respect to the outstanding amounts of loans, (i) if the relevant mainland China subsidiaries adopt the traditional foreign exchange administration mechanism, the outstanding amount of loans shall not exceed the difference between the total investment and the registered capital of the mainland China subsidiaries; and (ii) if the relevant mainland China subsidiaries adopt the relatively new foreign debt mechanism, the outstanding amount of loans shall not exceed 200% of the net asset of the relevant mainland China subsidiaries. We may also finance our mainland China subsidiaries by means of capital contributions. These capital contributions must be reported to or filed or registered with the MOFCOM, and the SAMR, or their local counterparts.

Pursuant to the Circular on the Reforming of the Management Method of the Settlement of Foreign Currency Capital of Foreign-Invested Enterprises, or SAFE Circular 19, which took effect on June 1, 2015 and was last amended on March 23, 2023, and the Circular of the State Administration of Foreign Exchange on Reforming and Regulating Policies on the Control over Foreign Exchange Settlement of Capital Accounts, or SAFE Circular 16, which was promulgated in June 2016, foreign-invested enterprises may either continue to follow the current payment-based foreign currency settlement system or choose to follow

 

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the “conversion-at-will” system for foreign currency settlement. SAFE Circular 19 and SAFE Circular 16, therefore, have substantially lifted the restrictions on the use by a foreign-invested enterprise of its Renminbi registered capital, foreign debt and repatriated funds raised through overseas listing converted from foreign currencies. Nevertheless, SAFE Circular 19 and SAFE Circular 16 reiterate the principle that Renminbi converted from the foreign currency-denominated capital of a foreign invested company may not be directly or indirectly used for purposes beyond its business scope and prohibit foreign-invested companies from using such Renminbi fund to provide loans to persons other than affiliates unless otherwise permitted under their business scopes.

Under the laws and regulations in mainland China, we are permitted to utilize the proceeds of any financing outside mainland China to fund our mainland China subsidiaries by making loans to or additional capital contributions to our mainland China subsidiaries, subject to applicable government registration, statutory limitations on amount and approval requirements. These laws and regulations may significantly limit our ability to use Renminbi converted from the net proceeds of any financing outside mainland China to fund the establishment of new entities in mainland China by our mainland China subsidiaries, to invest in or acquire any other PRC domestic companies through our mainland China subsidiaries.

We may rely on dividends and other distributions on equity paid by our mainland China subsidiaries to fund any cash and financing requirements we may have, and any limitation on the ability of our mainland China subsidiaries to make payments to us could have a material and adverse effect on our ability to conduct our business.

ECARX Holdings is a holding company, and we may rely on dividends and other distributions on equity paid by our mainland China subsidiaries for our cash and financing requirements, including the funds necessary to pay dividends and other cash distributions to our shareholders and service any debt we may incur. Current regulations in mainland China permit our mainland China subsidiaries to pay dividends to us only out of their accumulated after-tax profits upon satisfaction of relevant statutory conditions and procedures, if any, determined in accordance with the accounting standards and regulations in mainland China. In addition, each of our mainland China subsidiaries is required to set aside at least 10% of its after-tax profits each year, if any, to fund certain reserve funds until the total amount set aside reaches 50% of its registered capital.

As of June 30, 2023, most of our mainland China subsidiaries at that time had not made appropriations to statutory reserves as our mainland China subsidiaries at that time reported accumulated loss. For a detailed discussion of applicable PRC regulations governing distribution of dividends, see “Government Regulations — Regulation on Dividend Distribution.”

Additionally, if our mainland China subsidiaries incur debt on their own behalf in the future, the instruments governing their debt may restrict their ability to pay dividends or make other distributions to us. In addition, the incurrence of indebtedness by our mainland China subsidiaries could result in operating and financing covenants and undertakings to creditors that would restrict the ability of our mainland China subsidiaries to pay dividends to us.

Any limitation on the ability of our mainland China subsidiaries to pay dividends or make other distributions to us could materially and adversely limit our ability to grow, make investments or acquisitions that could be beneficial to our business, pay dividends, or otherwise fund and conduct our business. See “— If we are classified as a mainland China resident enterprise for purposes of income tax in mainland China, such classification could result in unfavorable tax consequences to us and our non-mainland China shareholders.”

It may be difficult for overseas regulators to conduct investigations or collect evidence within mainland China.

Shareholder claims or regulatory investigation that are common in jurisdictions outside mainland China are difficult to pursue as a matter of law or practicality in mainland China. For example, in mainland China, there are significant legal and other obstacles to providing information needed for regulatory investigations or litigation initiated outside mainland China. Although the authorities in mainland China may establish a regulatory cooperation mechanism with the securities regulators of another country or region to implement cross-border supervision and administration, such cooperation with the securities regulators

 

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in the United States or other jurisdictions may not be efficient in the absence of mutual and practical cooperation mechanism. Furthermore, according to Article 177 of the PRC Securities Law which took effect in March 2020, no overseas securities regulator is allowed to directly conduct investigations or evidence collection activities within mainland China, and without the consent by the Chinese securities government authorities and the other competent governmental agencies, no entity or individual may provide documents or materials related to securities business to any foreign party. The Provisions on Strengthening Confidentiality and Archives Administration of Overseas Securities Offering and Listing by Domestic Companies which took effect on March 31, 2023 also provide that where an overseas securities regulator and a competent overseas authority requests to inspect, investigate or collect evidence from a mainland Chinese company concerning its overseas offering and listing, such inspection, investigation and evidence collection shall be conducted under a cross-border regulatory cooperation mechanism, and the mainland Chinese company shall first obtain approval from the CSRC or other competent PRC authorities before cooperating with the inspection and investigation by the overseas securities regulator or competent overseas authority, or providing documents and materials requested in such inspection and investigation. While detailed interpretation of or implementation relevant rules have yet to be promulgated, the inability for an overseas securities regulator to directly conduct investigations or evidence collection activities within mainland China and the potential obstacles for information provision may further increase difficulties faced by you in protecting your interests.

Increases in labor costs and enforcement of stricter labor laws and regulations in China may adversely affect our business and our profitability.

China’s overall economy and the average wage in China have increased in recent years and are expected to grow. The average wage level for our employees has also increased in recent years. We expect that our labor costs, including wages and employee benefits, will increase. Unless we are able to pass on these increased labor costs to those who pay for our services, our profitability and results of operations may be materially and adversely affected.

In addition, we have been subject to stricter regulatory requirements in terms of entering into labor contracts with our employees, limitation with respect to utilization of labor dispatching, applying for foreigner work permits, labor protection and labor condition and paying various statutory employee benefits, including pensions, housing fund, medical insurance, work-related injury insurance, unemployment insurance and maternity insurance to designated government agencies for the benefit of our employees. Pursuant to the PRC Labor Contract Law and its implementation rules, employers are subject to stricter requirements in terms of signing labor contracts, minimum wages, paying remuneration, determining the term of employee’s probation and unilaterally terminating labor contracts. In the event that we decide to terminate some of our employees or otherwise change our employment or labor practices, the PRC Labor Contract Law and its implementation rules may limit our ability to effect those changes in a desirable or cost-effective manner, which could adversely affect our business and results of operations.

Companies registered and operating in mainland China are required under the PRC Social Insurance Law (latest amended in 2018) and the Regulations on the Administration of Housing Funds (latest amended in 2019) to, apply for social insurance registration and housing fund deposit registration within 30 days of their establishment, and to pay for their employees different social insurance including pension insurance, medical insurance, work-related injury insurance, unemployment insurance, and maternity insurance to the extent required by law.

Because the interpretation and implementation of labor-related laws and regulations are still evolving, our employment practices may violate labor-related laws and regulations in China, which may subject us to labor disputes or government investigations. We cannot assure you that we have complied or will be able to comply with all labor-related law and regulations including those relating to obligations to make full social insurance payments and contribute to the housing provident funds. If we are found to have violated applicable labor laws and regulations, we could be required to provide additional compensation to our employees and our business, financial condition and results of operations could be adversely affected.

You may experience difficulties in effecting service of legal process, enforcing foreign judgments or bringing actions in China against us or our management based on foreign laws.

ECARX Holdings is an exempted company incorporated under the laws of the Cayman Islands, while we conduct substantially all of our operations in China, and substantially all of our assets are located in

 

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China. As a result, it may be difficult for our shareholders to effect service of process upon us or those persons inside China. In addition, mainland China does not have treaties providing for the reciprocal recognition and enforcement of judgments of courts with the Cayman Islands and many other countries and regions. Therefore, recognition and enforcement in mainland China of judgments of a court in any of these jurisdictions in relation to any matter not subject to a binding arbitration provision may be difficult or impossible. For additional information, please see the “Enforceability of Civil Liability and Agent for Service of Process in the United States.”

Fluctuations in exchange rates could have a material and adverse effect on our results of operations.

The conversion of Renminbi into foreign currencies, including U.S. dollars, is based on rates set by the People’s Bank of China. The Renminbi has fluctuated against the U.S. dollar, at times significantly and unpredictably. The value of Renminbi against the U.S. dollar and other currencies is affected by changes in China’s political and economic conditions and by China’s foreign exchange policies, among other things. We cannot assure you that Renminbi will not appreciate or depreciate significantly in value against the U.S. dollar in the future. It is difficult to predict how market forces or PRC or U.S. government policy may impact the exchange rate between Renminbi and the U.S. dollar in the future.

There remains significant international pressure on the PRC government to adopt a more flexible currency policy. Any significant appreciation or depreciation of Renminbi may materially and adversely affect our revenues, earnings and financial position, and the value of, and any dividends payable on, our securities in U.S. dollars. For example, to the extent that we need to convert U.S. dollars we receive into Renminbi to pay our operating expenses, appreciation of Renminbi against the U.S. dollar would have an adverse effect on the Renminbi amount we would receive from the conversion. Conversely, a significant depreciation of Renminbi against the U.S. dollar may significantly reduce the U.S. dollar equivalent of our earnings, which in turn could adversely affect the price of our securities.

Very limited hedging options are available in mainland China to reduce our exposure to exchange rate fluctuations. To date, we have not entered into any hedging transactions to reduce our exposure to foreign currency exchange risk. While we may decide to enter into hedging transactions in the future, the availability and effectiveness of these hedges may be limited and we may not be able to adequately hedge our exposure or at all. In addition, our currency exchange losses may be magnified by exchange control regulations in mainland China that restrict our ability to convert Renminbi into foreign currency. As a result, fluctuations in exchange rates may have a material adverse effect on your investment.

Moreover, certain information presented in this prospectus has been converted from Renminbi to U.S. dollars at the exchange rate referenced above. While such conversions are provided for convenience only, any appreciation or depreciation in the value of Renminbi relative to the U.S. dollar could cause the results of conversion using a rate that is different from the foregoing rate to differ materially from those contained in this prospectus.

Governmental control of currency conversion may limit our ability to utilize our revenues effectively.

The PRC government imposes controls on the convertibility of Renminbi into foreign currencies and, in certain cases, the remittance of currency out of mainland China. Under existing foreign exchange regulations in mainland China, payments of current account items, such as profit distributions and trade and service-related foreign exchange transactions, can be made in foreign currencies without prior approval from the SAFE, by complying with certain procedural requirements. However, approval from or registration with appropriate government authorities is required where Renminbi is to be converted into a foreign currency and remitted out of mainland China to pay capital expenses, such as the repayment of loans denominated in foreign currencies. See “Government Regulations — Regulation on Foreign Exchange.”

Since 2016, the PRC government has tightened its foreign exchange policies again and stepped up scrutiny of major outbound capital movement. More restrictions and a substantial vetting process have been put in place by SAFE to regulate cross-border transactions falling under the capital account. The PRC government may also restrict access in the future to foreign currencies for current account transactions, at its discretion. We receive substantially all of our revenues in Renminbi. If the foreign exchange control system

 

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prevents us from obtaining sufficient foreign currencies to satisfy our foreign currency demands, we may not be able to pay dividends in foreign currencies to our shareholder.

Regulations in mainland China relating to offshore investment activities by mainland China residents may limit our mainland China subsidiaries’ ability to increase their registered capital or distribute profits to us or otherwise expose us or our mainland China resident beneficial owners to liability and penalties under the law of mainland China.

SAFE requires mainland China residents or entities to register with SAFE or its local branch in connection with their establishment or control of an offshore entity established for the purpose of overseas investment or financing. In addition, such mainland China residents or entities must update their SAFE registrations when the offshore special purpose vehicle undergoes certain material events. See “Government Regulations — Regulation on Foreign Exchange — Offshore Investment by Mainland China Residents.”

If our shareholders who are mainland China residents or entities do not complete their registration with the local SAFE branches, our mainland China subsidiaries may be prohibited from distributing their profits and any proceeds from any reduction in capital, share transfer or liquidation to us, and we may be restricted in our ability to contribute additional capital to our mainland China subsidiaries. Moreover, failure to comply with SAFE registration requirements could result in liability under the law of mainland China for evasion of applicable foreign exchange restrictions.

However, we may not be informed of the identities of all the mainland China residents or entities holding direct or indirect interests in our company, nor can we compel our beneficial owners to comply with SAFE registration requirements. As a result, we cannot assure you that all of our shareholders or beneficial owners who are mainland China residents or entities have complied with, and will in the future make any registrations or obtain any approvals required by, SAFE regulations. Failure by such shareholders or beneficial owners to comply with SAFE regulations, or failure by us to amend the foreign exchange registrations of our mainland China subsidiaries, could subject us to fines or legal sanctions, restrict our overseas or cross-border investment activities, limit our mainland China subsidiaries’ ability to make distributions or pay dividends to us or affect our ownership structure, which could adversely affect our business and prospects.

Any failure to comply with PRC regulations regarding the registration requirements for employee stock incentive plans may subject plan participants in mainland China or us to fines and other legal or administrative sanctions.

Under the SAFE regulations, mainland China residents who participate in a stock incentive plan of an overseas listed company, subject to certain exceptions, are required to register with the SAFE or its local branches through a domestic qualified agent which could be a mainland China subsidiary of such overseas listed company, and complete certain other procedures. In addition, an overseas entrusted institution shall be retained to uniformly handle matters in connection with the exercise of share options, the purchase and sale of corresponding shares or interests, and the fund transfer, etc. See “Government Regulations — Regulation on Labor — Employee Stock Incentive Plan.” We and our mainland China resident employees who participate in our share incentive plans are subject to these regulations since we became a public company listed in the United States. If we or any of these mainland China resident employees fail to comply with these regulations, we or such employees may be subject to fines and other legal or administrative sanctions.

Furthermore, the State Administration of Taxation, or the SAT, has issued certain circulars concerning employee share options and restricted shares. Under these circulars, our mainland China resident employees who exercise share options or are granted restricted shares will be subject to individual income tax on income from wages and salaries in mainland China. Our mainland China subsidiaries have obligations to file documents related to employee share options or restricted shares with relevant tax authorities and to withhold individual income taxes on income from wages and salaries. If our mainland China resident employees fail to pay or we fail to withhold their individual income taxes on income from wages and salaries, we may face sanctions imposed by PRC tax authorities or other PRC government authorities.

 

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Discontinuation of any of the preferential tax treatments and government subsidies or imposition of any additional taxes and surcharges could adversely affect our financial condition and results of operations.

Our mainland China subsidiaries have received various financial subsidies from PRC local government authorities. The financial subsidies result from discretionary incentives and policies adopted by PRC local government authorities. Local governments may decide to change or discontinue such financial subsidies at any time. The discontinuation of such financial subsidies or imposition of any additional taxes could adversely affect our financial condition and results of operations.

If we are classified as a mainland China resident enterprise for purposes of income tax in mainland China, such classification could result in unfavorable tax consequences to us and our non-mainland China shareholders.

Under the PRC Enterprise Income Tax Law and its implementation rules, an enterprise established outside of mainland China with a “de facto management body” within mainland China is considered a mainland China resident enterprise. The implementation rules define the term “de facto management body” as the body that exercises full and substantial control over and overall management of the business, productions, personnel, accounts and properties of an enterprise. The SAT, issued a circular in April 2009 and amended it in January 2014, known as Circular 82, which provides certain specific criteria for determining whether the “de facto management body” of a mainland China-controlled enterprise that is incorporated offshore is located in mainland China. Although Circular 82 only applies to offshore enterprises controlled by enterprises or enterprise groups in mainland China, not those controlled by individuals in mainland China or foreigners like us, the criteria set forth in the circular may reflect the SAT’s general position on how the “de facto management body” test should be applied in determining the tax resident status of all offshore enterprises. According to Circular 82, an offshore incorporated enterprise controlled by a mainland Chinese company or a mainland Chinese company group will be regarded as a mainland China tax resident by virtue of having its “de facto management body” in mainland China and will be subject to enterprise income tax in mainland on its global income only if all of the following conditions are met: (i) the primary location of the day-to-day operational management is in mainland China; (ii) decisions relating to the enterprise’s financial and human resource matters are made or are subject to approval by organizations or personnel in mainland China; (iii) the enterprise’s primary assets, accounting books and records, company seals, and board and shareholder resolutions, are located or maintained in mainland China; and (iv) at least 50% of voting board members or senior executives habitually reside in mainland China.

We believe that none of our entities outside of mainland China is a mainland China resident enterprise for tax purposes. However, the tax resident status of an enterprise is subject to determination by the tax authorities in mainland China and uncertainties remain with respect to the interpretation of the term “de facto management body.” If the tax authorities in mainland China determine that we are a mainland China resident enterprise for enterprise income tax purposes, we will be subject to the enterprise income tax on our global income at the rate of 25% and we will be required to comply with mainland China enterprise income tax reporting obligations. In addition, we may be required to withhold a 10% withholding tax from interest or dividends we pay to our shareholders that are non-mainland China resident enterprises. In addition, non-mainland China resident enterprise shareholders may be subject to mainland China tax at a rate of 10% on gains realized on the sale or other disposition of ordinary shares, if such income is treated as sourced from within mainland China. Furthermore, if tax authorities in mainland China determine that we are a mainland China resident enterprise for enterprise income tax purposes, interest or dividends paid to our non-mainland China individual shareholders and any gain realized on the transfer of ordinary shares by such holders may be subject to mainland China tax at a rate of 20% (which, in the case of interest or dividends, may be withheld at source by us), if such gains are deemed to be from mainland China sources. These rates may be reduced by an applicable tax treaty, but it is unclear whether our non-mainland China shareholders would be able to claim the benefits of any tax treaties between their country of tax residence and mainland China in the event that we are treated as a mainland China resident enterprise.

We may not be able to obtain certain benefits under relevant tax treaty on dividends paid by our mainland China subsidiaries to us through our Hong Kong subsidiary.

ECARX Holdings is a holding company incorporated under the laws of the Cayman Islands and as such rely on dividends and other distributions on equity from our mainland China subsidiaries to satisfy

 

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part of its liquidity requirements. Pursuant to the PRC Enterprise Income Tax Law, a withholding tax rate of 10% currently applies to dividends paid by a mainland China resident enterprise to a foreign enterprise investor, unless any such foreign investor’s jurisdiction of incorporation has a tax treaty with mainland China that provides for preferential tax treatment. Pursuant to the Arrangement between Mainland China and the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region for the Avoidance of Double Taxation and Tax Evasion on Income, such withholding tax rate may be lowered to 5% if a Hong Kong resident enterprise owns no less than 25% of a mainland Chinese company. Furthermore, the Administrative Measures for Non-Resident Enterprises to Enjoy Treatments under Treaties, which took effect in January 2020, require non-resident enterprises to determine whether they are qualified to enjoy the preferential tax treatment under the tax treaties and file relevant report and materials with the tax authorities. There are also other conditions for enjoying the reduced withholding tax rate according to other relevant tax rules and regulations. See “Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Result of Operations — Taxation — China.”

As of June 30, 2023, most of our subsidiaries located in mainland China reported accumulated loss and therefore they had no retained earnings for offshore distribution. In the near term, we intend to re-invest all earnings, if any, generated from our mainland China subsidiaries for the operation and expansion of our business in China. Should our tax policy change to allow for offshore distribution of our earnings, we would be subject to a significant withholding tax. Our determination regarding our qualification to enjoy the preferential tax treatment could be challenged by the relevant tax authority and we may not be able to complete the necessary filings with the relevant tax authority and enjoy the preferential withholding tax rate of 5% under the arrangement with respect to dividends to be paid by our mainland China subsidiaries to our Hong Kong subsidiary.

We face uncertainty with respect to indirect transfers of equity interests in mainland China resident enterprises by their non-mainland China holding companies.

In February 2015, the SAT, issued the Circular on Issues of Enterprise Income Tax on Indirect Transfers of Assets by Non-PRC Resident Enterprises, or Circular 7. Circular 7 extends its tax jurisdiction to not only indirect transfers but also transactions involving transfer of other taxable assets, through the offshore transfer of a foreign intermediate holding company. In addition, Circular 7 provides certain criteria on how to assess reasonable commercial purposes and has introduced safe harbors for internal group restructurings and the purchase and sale of equity through a public securities market. Circular 7 also brings challenges to both the foreign transferor and transferee (or other person who is obligated to pay for the transfer) of the taxable assets. Where a non-mainland China resident enterprise conducts an “indirect transfer” by transferring the taxable assets indirectly by disposing of the equity interests of an overseas holding company, the non-mainland China resident enterprise being the transferor, or the transferee, or the mainland China entity which directly owned the taxable assets may report to the relevant tax authority such indirect transfer. Using a “substance over form” principle, the tax authority in mainland China may disregard the existence of the overseas holding company if it lacks a reasonable commercial purpose and was established for the purpose of reducing, avoiding or deferring tax in mainland China. As a result, gains derived from such indirect transfer may be subject to enterprise income tax in mainland China, and the transferee or other person who is obligated to pay for the transfer is obligated to withhold the applicable taxes, currently at a rate of 10% for the transfer of equity interests in a mainland China resident enterprise. On October 17, 2017, the SAT issued Circular on Issues of Tax Withholding regarding Non-PRC Resident Enterprise Income Tax, or Circular 37, which came into effect on December 1, 2017 and was amended on June 15, 2018. Circular 37 further clarifies the practice and procedure of the withholding of nonresident enterprise income tax.

We face uncertainties on the reporting and consequences of future private equity financing transactions, share exchanges or other transactions involving the transfer of shares in our company by investors that are non-mainland China resident enterprises. The tax authorities in mainland China may pursue such non-mainland China resident enterprises with respect to a filing or the transferees with respect to withholding obligations, and request our mainland China subsidiaries to assist in the filing. As a result, we and non-mainland China resident enterprises in such transactions may become at risk of being subject to filing obligations or being taxed under Circular 7 and Circular 37, and may be required to expend valuable resources

 

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to comply with them or to establish that we and our non-mainland China resident enterprises should not be taxed under these regulations, which may have a material adverse effect on our financial condition and results of operations.

If the custodians or authorized users of controlling non-tangible assets of our company, including our corporate chops and seals, fail to fulfill their responsibilities, or misappropriate or misuse these assets, our business and operations could be materially and adversely affected.

Under the law of mainland China legal documents of PRC domestic companies for corporate transactions are executed using the chops or seal of the signing entity or with the signature of a legal representative whose designation is registered and filed with the relevant branch of the SAMR.

Although we usually utilize chops to enter into contracts, the designated legal representatives of each of our mainland China subsidiaries have the apparent authority to enter into contracts on behalf of such entities without chops and bind such entities. In order to maintain the physical security of our chops and chops of our mainland China entities, we generally store these items in secured locations accessible only by the authorized personnel in the legal or finance department of each of our subsidiaries. Although we monitor such authorized personnel, there is no assurance such procedures will prevent all instances of abuse or negligence. Accordingly, if any of our authorized personnel misuse or misappropriate our corporate chops or seals, we could encounter difficulties in maintaining control over the relevant entities and experience significant disruption to our operations. If a designated legal representative obtains control of the chops in an effort to obtain control over any of our mainland China subsidiaries, we or our mainland China subsidiaries would need to pass a new shareholders or board resolution to designate a new legal representative and we would need to take legal action to seek the return of the chops, apply for new chops with the relevant authorities, or otherwise seek legal redress for the violation of the representative’s fiduciary duties to us, which could involve significant time and resources and divert management attention away from our regular business. In addition, the affected entity may not be able to recover corporate assets that are sold or transferred out of our control in the event of such a misappropriation if a transferee relies on the apparent authority of the representative and acts in good faith.

Our leased property interest or entitlement to other facilities or assets may be defective or subject to lien and our right to lease, own or use the properties affected by such defects or lien challenged, which could cause significant disruption to our business.

Under the law in mainland China, all lease agreements are required to be registered with the local housing authorities. We presently lease several premises in mainland China, some of which have not completed the registration of the ownership rights or the registration of our leases with the relevant authorities. Failure to complete these required registrations may expose our landlords, lessors and us to potential monetary fines. If these registrations are not obtained in a timely manner or at all, we may be subject to monetary fines or may have to relocate our offices and incur the associated losses.

We cannot assure you that the lessors of our leased properties are entitled to lease the relevant real properties to us. If the lessors are not entitled to lease the real properties to us and the owners of such real properties decline to ratify the lease agreements between us and the respective lessors, we may not be able to enforce our rights to lease such properties under the respective lease agreements against the owners. Meanwhile, registered mortgage of property right may over leased properties before such properties are leased to some of our mainland China subsidiaries. In addition, some registered addresses of mainland China subsidiaries may be inconsistent with the actual operating addresses, and the actual uses of some land leased to some of our mainland China subsidiaries are inconsistent with the planned use indicated on the ownership certificate of such land. If our lease agreements are claimed as null and void by third parties who are the real owners of such leased real properties, we could be required to vacate the properties, in the event of which we could only initiate the claim against the lessors under relevant lease agreements for indemnities for their breach of the relevant leasing agreements. In addition, we may not be able to renew our existing lease agreements before their expiration dates, in which case we may be required to vacate the properties. We cannot assure you that suitable alternative locations are readily available on commercially reasonable terms, or at all, and if we are unable to relocate our operations in a timely manner, our operations may be adversely affected.

 

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Risks Relating to Our Securities

The price of our securities may be volatile, and the value of our securities may decline.

We cannot predict the prices at which our securities will trade. The price of our securities may not bear any relationship to any established criteria of the value of our business or prospects, and the market price of our securities may fluctuate substantially. In addition, the trading price of our securities could be subject to fluctuations in response to various factors, some of which are beyond our control. These fluctuations could cause you to lose all or part of your investment in our securities as you might be unable to sell these securities at or above the price you paid for the securities. Factors that could cause fluctuations in the trading price of our securities include the following:

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actual or anticipated fluctuations in our financial condition or results of operations;

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variance in our financial performance from the expectations of securities analysts;

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changes in our projected operating and financial results;

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changes in laws or regulations applicable to our business;

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announcements by us or our competitors of significant business developments, acquisitions or new offerings;

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sales of our securities by us, our shareholders or our warrant holders, as well as the anticipation of lockup releases;

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significant breaches of, disruptions to or other incidents involving our information technology systems or those of our business partners;

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our involvement in litigation;

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conditions or developments affecting our industry;

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changes in senior management or key personnel;

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the trading volume of our securities;

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changes in the anticipated future size and growth rate of our markets;

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publication of research reports or news stories about us, our competitors or our industry, or positive or negative recommendations or withdrawal of research coverage by securities analysts;

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general economic and market conditions; and other events or factors, including those resulting from war, incidents of terrorism, global pandemics or responses to these events.

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We may be subject to securities litigation, which is expensive and could divert management attention.

Companies that have experienced volatility in the volume and market price of their shares have been subject to an increased incidence of securities class action litigation. We may be the target of this type of litigation in the future. Securities litigation against us could result in substantial costs and divert our management’s attention from other business concerns, and, if adversely determined, could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition, and results of operations.

A market for our securities may not develop or be sustained, which would adversely affect the liquidity and price of our securities.

As of the date of this prospectus, a substantial amount of our shares is subject to transfer restrictions. An active trading market for our securities may never develop or, if developed, may not be sustained. In addition, the price of our securities may vary due to general economic conditions and forecasts, our general business condition and the release of our financial reports. Additionally, if our securities are not listed on Nasdaq and are quoted on the OTC Bulletin Board (an inter-dealer automated quotation system for equity securities that is not a national securities exchange), the liquidity and price of our securities may be more limited than if we were quoted or listed on Nasdaq or another national securities exchange. You may be unable to sell our securities unless a market can be established or sustained.

 

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If we do not meet the expectations of equity research analysts, if they do not publish research reports about our business or if they issue unfavorable commentary or downgrade our securities, the price of our securities could decline.

The trading market for our securities relies in part on the research reports that equity research analysts publish about us and our business. The estimates of such analysts are based upon their own opinions and may be different from our estimates or expectations. If our results of operations are below the estimates or expectations of equity research analysts and investors, the price of our securities could decline. Moreover, the price of our securities could decline if one or more equity research analysts downgrade our securities or if those analysts issue other unfavorable commentary or cease publishing reports about us or our business.

Sales of a substantial number of our securities in the public market by the Selling Securityholders and/or by our existing securityholders could cause the price of our securities to fall.

The Selling Securityholders can sell, under this prospectus, up to (i) 291,679,672 Class A Ordinary Shares constituting approximately 79.5% of the total issued and outstanding ordinary shares of ECARX Holdings as of September 21, 2023 (assuming the exercise of all outstanding Warrants and the conversion of Investor Notes), and (ii) 8,872,000 Warrants, representing approximately 37.2% of our outstanding Warrants. Mr. Eric Li (Li Shufu), our controlling shareholder, and Mr. Ziyu Shen, our Chairman and Chief Executive Officer, can sell all Ordinary Shares beneficially owned by them under this prospectus, being 168,921,032 Class A Ordinary Shares (including (i) 144,440,574 Class A Ordinary Shares and (ii) 24,480,458 Class A Ordinary Shares issuable upon the conversion of 24,480,458 Class B Ordinary Shares beneficially owned by Fu&Li Industrious Innovators Limited, an affiliate of Mr. Eric Li (Li Shufu)) and 24,480,458 Class A Ordinary Shares (issuable upon the conversion of 24,480,458 Class B Ordinary Shares beneficially owned by Jie&Hao Holding Limited, an affiliate of Mr. Ziyu Shen), respectively, and constituting approximately 46.0% and 6.7% of our issued and outstanding Ordinary Shares as of September 21, 2023 (assuming the exercise of all outstanding Warrants and the conversion of Investor Notes), respectively, so long as the registration statement of which this prospectus forms a part is available for use. The Ordinary Shares beneficially owned by Mr. Eric Li (Li Shufu) and Mr. Ziyu Shen represented 48.2% and 30.3% of the aggregate voting power of our total issued and outstanding share capital as of September 21, 2023 (assuming the exercise of all outstanding Warrants and the conversion of Investor Notes), respectively. These shares were acquired at prices significantly below the current trading price of the Class A Ordinary Shares.

Sales of a substantial number of Registered Securities, or the perception that those sales might occur, could result in a significant decline in the public trading price of our securities and could impair our ability to raise capital through the sale or issuance of additional equity securities. We are unable to predict the effect that such sales may have on the prevailing market price of our securities. Despite such a decline in the public trading price, certain Selling Securityholders may still experience a positive rate of return on the Registered Securities due to the lower price at which they acquired the Registered Securities compared to other public investors and may be incentivized to sell the Class A Ordinary Shares or Warrants when others are not. For example, based on the closing price of the Class A Ordinary Shares and Warrants as referenced above, holders of the Sponsor Share may experience a potential profit of up to US$3.37 per share on the Sponsor Shares; holders of the Legacy Shares may experience a potential profit up to US$3.37 per share; holders of the Legacy Founder Shares may experience a potential profit ranging from US$2.20 to US$2.97 per share; the Strategic Investors may experience a potential profit on the Strategic Investor Shares if the price of the Class A Ordinary Shares exceeds US$10.00 per share; Lotus Technology Inc. may experience a potential profit on the Lotus Shares if the price of the Class A Ordinary Shares exceeds US$9.50 per share; the CB Investors may experience a potential profit on the CB Conversion Shares if the price of the Class A Ordinary Shares exceeds US$11.50 per share; and the Sponsor may experience a potential profit on the Sponsor Warrants if the price of the Class Ordinary Shares exceeds US$11.50 per share. Public investors may not experience a similar rate of return on the securities they purchase due to differences in the purchase prices that they paid and the current trading price.

Future issuance of Ordinary Shares will result in additional dilution of the percentage ownership of our shareholders and could cause our share price to fall.

Additional Class A Ordinary Shares are issuable upon conversion of the Investor Notes (which are of an aggregate principal amount of US$65 million Investor Notes) at a conversion price of US$11.5 per share

 

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(subject to customary adjustments on the conversion price). In addition, we may need additional capital in the future to finance our operations. We may sell Ordinary Shares, convertible securities or other equity securities in one or more transactions at prices and in a manner we determine from time to time. Furthermore, we may issue additional Ordinary Shares in connection with the grant of equity awards to employees under our equity incentive plans. Any such issuance of additional share capital may cause shareholders to experience significant dilution of their ownership interests and the value of our securities to decline.

Exercise of the Warrants could increase the number of Class A Ordinary Shares eligible for future resale in the public market and result in dilution to its shareholders.

As of September 21, 2023, there were 23,871,971 Warrants outstanding. Each Warrant entitles its holder to purchase one Class A Ordinary Share at an exercise price of US$11.50 per share (subject to adjustment). To the extent Warrants are exercised, additional Class A Ordinary Shares will be issued, which will result in dilution to our then existing shareholders and increase the number of Class A Ordinary Shares eligible for resale in the public market. Sales of substantial numbers of such shares in the public market could depress the market price of the Class A Ordinary Shares.

The Warrants may never be in the money, and they may expire worthless.

The exercise price for the Warrants is US$11.50 per share (subject to adjustment). The likelihood that warrant holders will exercise the Warrants and any cash proceeds that we would receive are dependent upon the market price of our Class A Ordinary Shares, among other things. If the market price for our Ordinary Shares is less than US$11.50 per share, we believe warrant holders will be unlikely to exercise their Warrants. There is no assurance that the Warrants will be “in the money” prior to their expiration or that the warrant holders will exercise their Warrants.

We may redeem your unexpired Public Warrants prior to their exercise at a time that is disadvantageous to you, thereby making your warrants worthless.

We have the ability to redeem outstanding Public Warrants at any time after they become exercisable and prior to their expiration, at a price of US$0.01 per warrant, provided that the last reported sale price of our Ordinary Shares equals or exceeds US$18.00 per share (as adjusted) for any 20 trading days within a 30 trading-day period ending on the third trading day prior to the date on which we give proper notice of such redemption and there is an effective registration statement covering the issuance of Ordinary Shares issuable upon exercise of the Warrants. Redemption of the outstanding Public Warrants could force you (i) to exercise your Public Warrants and pay the exercise price therefor at a time when it may be disadvantageous for you to do so, (ii) to sell your Public Warrants at the then-current market price when you might otherwise wish to hold your Public Warrants, or (iii) to accept the nominal redemption price, which, at the time the outstanding Public Warrants are called for redemption, is likely to be substantially less than the market value of your Public Warrants.

Our dual-class voting structure will limit your ability to influence corporate matters and could discourage others from pursuing any change of control transactions that holders of Class A Ordinary Shares may consider beneficial.

ECARX Holdings adopts a dual-class voting structure such that our ordinary share capital consists of Class A Ordinary Shares and Class B Ordinary Shares. Both Class A Ordinary Shares and Class B Ordinary Shares confer the same rights other than voting and conversion rights. Each holder of Class A Ordinary Shares is entitled to one vote per share and each holder of Class B Ordinary Shares is entitled to 10 votes per share on all matters submitted to them for a vote. Class A Ordinary Shares and Class B Ordinary Shares vote together as a single class on all matters submitted to a vote of our shareholders, except as may otherwise be required by law. The memorandum and articles of association of ECARX, as amended from time to time, may provide for the instances where the holders of Class A Ordinary Shares and Class B Ordinary Shares may vote as a separate class. Under the amended and restated memorandum and articles of association of ECARX Holdings, Class A Ordinary Shares and Class B Ordinary Shares will vote as a separate class if any rights attaching to either Class A Ordinary Shares or Class B Ordinary Shares are being materially and

 

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adversely varied. Such variation requires the consent in writing of the holders of at least two-thirds of the issued Class A Ordinary Shares or Class B Ordinary Shares (as the case may be) or with the sanction of a special resolution passed at a separate meeting of the holders of Class A Ordinary Shares or Class B Ordinary Shares (as the case may be). The Companies Act (As Revised) of the Cayman Islands also provides where a compromise or arrangement is proposed between a Cayman Islands company and its shareholders or any class of them, the court may, on the application of the company or of any shareholder of the company, order a meeting of the shareholders of the company or class of shareholders, as the case may be, to be summoned in such manner as the court directs. Each Class B Ordinary Share is convertible into one Class A Ordinary Share, whereas Class A Ordinary Shares are not convertible into Class B Ordinary Shares under any circumstances. Upon any transfer of Class B Ordinary Shares by a holder thereof to any person or entity which is not an affiliate of such holder, such Class B Ordinary Shares are automatically and immediately converted into the equal number of Class A Ordinary Shares.

Mr. Eric Li (Li Shufu) and Mr. Ziyu Shen, founders of ECARX, collectively own all of the Class B Ordinary Shares. These Class B Ordinary Shares constitute approximately 14.5% of our total issued and outstanding share capital and 62.9% of the aggregate voting power of our total issued and outstanding share capital due to the disparate voting powers associated with our dual-class share structure. As a result of the dual-class share structure and the concentration of control, holders of Class B Ordinary Shares have considerable influence over matters such as decisions regarding election of directors and other significant corporate actions. Such holders may take actions that are not in the best interest of us or our other shareholders. This concentration of control may discourage, delay, or prevent a change in control of us, which could have the effect of depriving our other shareholders of the opportunity to receive a premium for their shares as part of a sale of us and may reduce our share price. This concentrated control will limit the ability of holders of Class A Ordinary Shares to influence corporate matters and could discourage others from pursuing any potential merger, takeover, or other change of control transactions that holders of Class A Ordinary Shares may view as beneficial.

The dual-class structure of our ordinary shares may adversely affect the trading market for our securities.

Certain shareholder advisory firms have announced changes to their eligibility criteria for inclusion of securities of public companies on certain indices, including the S&P 500, to exclude companies with multiple classes of shares and companies whose public shareholders hold no more than 5% of total voting power from being added to such indices. In addition, several shareholder advisory firms have announced their opposition to the use of multiple class structures. As a result, the dual class structure of our ordinary shares may prevent the inclusion of our securities in such indices and may cause shareholder advisory firms to publish negative commentary about our corporate governance practices or otherwise seek to cause us to change our capital structure. Any such exclusion from indices could result in a less active trading market for our securities. Any actions or publications by shareholder advisory firms critical of our corporate governance practices or capital structure could also adversely affect the value of our securities.

The Warrant Agreement designates the courts of the State of New York or the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York as the sole and exclusive forum for certain types of actions and proceedings that may be initiated by holders of the Warrants, which could limit the ability of Warrant holders to obtain a favorable judicial forum for disputes with us in connection with such Warrants.

The Warrant Agreement provides that, subject to applicable law, (i) any action, proceeding or claim against us arising out of or relating in any way to the Warrant Agreement, will be brought and enforced in the courts of the State of New York or the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York, and (ii) we irrevocably submit to such jurisdiction, which jurisdiction shall be the exclusive forum for any such action, proceeding or claim. We have waived any objection to such exclusive jurisdiction and that such courts represent an inconvenient forum. Notwithstanding the foregoing, these provisions of the Warrant Agreement do not apply to suits brought to enforce any liability or duty created by the Exchange Act or any other claim for which the federal district courts of the United States of America are the sole and exclusive forum. Any person or entity purchasing or otherwise acquiring any interest in any Warrants under the Warrant Agreement shall be deemed to have notice of and to have consented to the forum provisions of the Warrant Agreement. If any action, the subject matter of which is within the scope of the forum provisions of the Warrant Agreement, is filed in a court other than a court of the State of New York or the

 

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United States District Court for the Southern District of New York (a “foreign action”) in the name of any holder of the warrants, such holder shall be deemed to have consented to: (i) the personal jurisdiction of the state and federal courts located in the State of New York in connection with any action brought in any such court to enforce the forum provisions (an “enforcement action”), and (ii) having service of process made upon such holder in any such enforcement action by service upon such warrant holder’s counsel in the foreign action as agent for such holder.

The choice-of-forum provision limits a Warrant holder’s ability to bring a claim in a judicial forum that it finds favorable for disputes with us, which may discourage such lawsuits. Alternatively, if a court were to find this provision of the Warrant Agreement inapplicable or unenforceable with respect to one or more of the specified types of actions or proceedings, we may incur additional costs associated with resolving such matters in other jurisdictions, which could materially and adversely affect our business, financial condition and results of operations and result in a diversion of the time and resources of our management and board of directors.

The requirements of being a public company may strain our resources, divert our management’s attention and affect our ability to attract and retain qualified board members.

We are subject to the reporting requirements of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, the Sarbanes-Oxley Act, the Dodd-Frank Act, Nasdaq Global Market listing requirements and other applicable securities rules and regulations. As such, we incur relevant legal, accounting and other expenses, and these expenses may increase even more if we no longer qualify as an “emerging growth company,” as defined in Section 2(a) of the Securities Act. The Exchange Act requires, among other things, that we file annual and current reports with respect to our business and operating results. The Sarbanes-Oxley Act requires, among other things, that we maintain effective disclosure controls and procedures and internal control over financial reporting. We may need to hire more employees or engage outside consultants to comply with these requirements, which will increase our costs and expenses.

Changing laws, regulations and standards relating to corporate governance and public disclosure are creating uncertainty for public companies, increasing legal and financial compliance costs and making some activities more time-consuming. These laws, regulations and standards are subject to varying interpretations, in many cases due to their lack of specificity, and, as a result, their application in practice may evolve over time as new guidance is provided by regulatory and governing bodies. This could result in continuing uncertainty regarding compliance matters and higher costs necessitated by ongoing revisions to disclosure and governance practices. We expect these laws and regulations to increase our legal and financial compliance costs and to render some activities more time-consuming and costly, although we are currently unable to estimate these costs with any degree of certainty.

Many members of our management team have limited experience managing a publicly traded company, interacting with public company investors and complying with the increasingly complex laws pertaining to public companies. Our management team may not successfully or efficiently manage the transition to being a public company subject to significant regulatory oversight and reporting obligations under the federal securities laws and regulations and the continuous scrutiny of securities analysts and investors. The need to establish the corporate infrastructure demanded of a public company may divert the management’s attention from implementing our growth strategy, which could prevent us from improving our business, financial condition and results of operations. Furthermore, we expect these rules and regulations to make it more difficult and more expensive for us to obtain director and officer liability insurance, and consequently we may be required to incur substantial costs to maintain the same or similar coverage. These additional obligations could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition, results of operations and prospects. These factors could also make it more difficult for us to attract and retain qualified members of our board of directors, particularly to serve on our audit committee, and qualified executive officers.

As a result of disclosure of information in this prospectus and in filings required of a public company, our business and financial condition will become more visible, which we believe may result in threatened or actual litigation, including by competitors and other third parties. If such claims are successful, our business and operating results could be adversely affected, and, even if the claims do not result in litigation or are resolved in our favor, these claims, and the time and resources necessary to resolve them, could cause an adverse effect on our business, financial condition, results of operations, prospects and reputation.

 

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We are an “emerging growth company,” and it cannot be certain if the reduced SEC reporting requirements applicable to emerging growth companies will make our Class A Ordinary Shares and Warrants less attractive to investors, which could have a material and adverse effect on us, including our growth prospects.

We are an “emerging growth company” as defined in the JOBS Act. We will remain an “emerging growth company” until the earliest to occur of (i) the last day of the fiscal year (a) following the fifth anniversary of the closing of the Business Combination, (b) in which we have total annual gross revenue of at least US$1.235 billion or (c) in which we are deemed to be a large accelerated filer, which means the market value of our common equity held by non-affiliates exceeds US$700 million as of the last business day of our prior second fiscal quarter, and (ii) the date on which we issued more than US$1.0 billion in non-convertible debt during the prior three-year period. We intend to take advantage of exemptions from various reporting requirements that are applicable to most other public companies, whether or not they are classified as “emerging growth companies,” including, but not limited to, an exemption from the provisions of Section 404(b) of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act requiring that our independent registered public accounting firm provide an attestation report on the effectiveness of our internal control over financial reporting and reduced disclosure obligations regarding executive compensation.

In addition, Section 102(b)(1) of the JOBS Act exempts “emerging growth companies” from being required to comply with new or revised financial accounting standards until private companies (that is, those that have not had a Securities Act registration statement declared effective or do not have a class of securities registered under the Exchange Act) are required to comply with the new or revised financial accounting standards. The JOBS Act provides that a company can elect to opt out of the extended transition period and comply with the requirements that apply to non-emerging growth companies, but any such election to opt out is irrevocable. We have elected not to opt out of such extended transition period, which means that when a standard is issued or revised and we have different application dates for public or private companies, we, as an emerging growth company, can adopt the new or revised standard at the time private companies adopt the new or revised standard. This may make comparison of our financial statements with certain other public companies difficult or impossible because of the potential differences in accounting standards used.

Furthermore, even after we no longer qualify as an “emerging growth company,” as long as we continue to qualify as a foreign private issuer under the Exchange Act, we will be exempt from certain provisions of the Exchange Act that are applicable to U.S. domestic public companies.

As a result, our shareholders may not have access to certain information they deem important or at the same time if we were not a foreign private issuer. We cannot predict if investors will find our securities less attractive because we rely on these exemptions. If some investors find our securities less attractive as a result, there may be a less active trading market and share price for our securities may be more volatile.

We qualify as a foreign private issuer within the meaning of the rules under the Exchange Act, and as such we are exempt from certain provisions applicable to United States domestic public companies.

Because we qualify as a foreign private issuer under the Exchange Act, we are exempt from certain provisions of the securities rules and regulations in the United States that are applicable to U.S. domestic issuers, including: (i) the rules under the Exchange Act requiring the filing of quarterly reports on Form 10-Q or current reports on Form 8-K with the SEC; (ii) the sections of the Exchange Act regulating the solicitation of proxies, consents, or authorizations in respect of a security registered under the Exchange Act; (iii) the sections of the Exchange Act requiring insiders to file public reports of their share ownership and trading activities and liability for insiders who profit from trades made in a short period of time; and (iv) the selective disclosure rules by issuers of material nonpublic information under Regulation FD.

We will be required to file an annual report on Form 20-F within four months of the end of each fiscal year. In addition, we intend to publish our results on a quarterly basis through press releases, distributed pursuant to the rules and regulations of Nasdaq. Press releases relating to financial results and material events will also be furnished to the SEC on Form 6-K. However, the information we are required to file with or furnish to the SEC will be less extensive and less timely compared to that required to be filed with the SEC by U.S. domestic issuers. Accordingly, you may receive less or different information about us than you would receive about a U.S. domestic public company.

 

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We could lose our status as a foreign private issuer under current SEC rules and regulations if more than 50% of our outstanding voting securities become directly or indirectly held of record by U.S. holders and any one of the following is true: (i) the majority of our directors or executive officers are U.S. citizens or residents; (ii) more than 50% of our assets are located in the United States; or (iii) our business is administered principally in the United States. If we lose our status as a foreign private issuer in the future, we will no longer be exempt from the rules described above and, among other things, will be required to file periodic reports and annual and quarterly financial statements as if we were a company incorporated in the United States. If this were to happen, we would likely incur substantial costs in fulfilling these additional regulatory requirements, and members of our management would likely have to divert time and resources from other responsibilities to ensuring these additional regulatory requirements are fulfilled.

We are a “controlled company” within the meaning of Nasdaq corporate governance rules, which could exempt us from certain corporate governance requirements that provide protection to shareholders of companies that are not controlled companies.

As of the date of this prospectus, Mr. Eric Li (Li Shufu), a co-founder of ECARX, beneficially owned 144,440,574 Class A Ordinary Shares and 24,480,458 Class B Ordinary Shares through entities controlled by him. These Ordinary Shares represent approximately 50.03% of the aggregate voting power of our total issued and outstanding share capital. As a result of his majority ownership and voting power, which would give him the ability to control the outcome of certain matters submitted to our shareholders for approval, including the appointment or removal of directors (subject to certain limitations described elsewhere in this prospectus), we qualify as a “controlled company” within the meaning of Nasdaq’s corporate governance standards and have the option not to comply with certain requirements to which companies that are not controlled companies are subject, including the requirement that a majority of our board of directors shall consist of independent directors and the requirement that our nominating and corporate governance committee and compensation committee shall be composed entirely of independent directors. As a result, you may not be provided with the benefits of certain corporate governance requirements of Nasdaq applicable to companies that are subject to these corporate governance requirements.

You may face difficulties in protecting your interests, and your ability to protect your rights through U.S. courts may be limited, because we are incorporated under the laws of the Cayman Islands, and we conduct substantially all of our operations, and a majority of our directors and executive officers reside, outside of the United States.

ECARX Holdings is an exempted company limited by shares incorporated under the laws of the Cayman Islands and we conduct a majority of our operations through our subsidiary, ECARX, outside the United States. Substantially all of our assets are located outside the United States. A majority of our officers and directors reside outside the United States and a substantial portion of the assets of those persons are located outside of the United States. As a result, it may be difficult for investors to effect service of process within the United States upon our directors or officers, or to enforce judgments obtained in the United States courts against our directors or officers.

Our corporate affairs are governed by the amended and restated memorandum and articles of association of ECARX Holdings, the Companies Act (As Revised) of the Cayman Islands and the common law of the Cayman Islands. The rights of shareholders to take action against our directors, actions by minority shareholders and the fiduciary duties of our directors to us under Cayman Islands law are to a large extent governed by the common law of the Cayman Islands. The common law of the Cayman Islands is derived in part from comparatively limited judicial precedent in the Cayman Islands as well as from the common law of England, the decisions of whose courts are of persuasive authority, but are not binding, on a court in the Cayman Islands. The rights of our shareholders and the fiduciary duties of our directors under Cayman Islands law are different from what they would be under statutes or judicial precedent in some jurisdictions in the United States. In particular, the Cayman Islands has a different body of securities laws than the United States and some U.S. states, such as Delaware, may have more fully developed and judicially interpreted bodies of corporate law than the Cayman Islands. In addition, shareholders of Cayman Islands companies may not have standing to initiate a shareholder derivative action in a federal court of the United States.

 

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The Grand Court of the Cayman Islands may not (i) recognize or enforce against us judgments of courts of the United States predicated upon the civil liability provisions of the federal securities laws of the United States or any state; and (ii) in original actions brought in the Cayman Islands, impose liabilities against us predicated upon the civil liability provisions of the federal securities laws of the United States or any state, so far as the liabilities imposed by those provisions are penal in nature. Although there is no statutory enforcement in the Cayman Islands of judgments obtained in the United States, (and the Cayman Islands are not a party to any treaties for the reciprocal enforcement or recognition of such judgments), the courts of the Cayman Islands will, at common law, recognize and enforce a foreign money judgment of a foreign court of competent jurisdiction without any re-examination of the merits of the underlying dispute based on the principle that the judgment of the competent foreign court imposes upon the judgment debtor an obligation to pay a liquidated sum for which such judgment has been given, provided such judgment (i) is given by a foreign court of competent jurisdiction, (ii) imposes on the judgment debtor a liability to pay a liquidated sum for which the judgment has been given, (iii) is final and conclusive, (iv) is not in respect of taxes, a fine or a penalty, and (v) was not obtained in a manner and is not of a kind the enforcement of which is contrary to natural justice or the public policy of the Cayman Islands. A Cayman Islands court may stay enforcement proceedings if concurrent proceedings are being brought elsewhere.

Shareholders of Cayman Islands exempted companies like us have no general rights under Cayman Islands law to inspect corporate records (other than the memorandum and articles of association, the register of mortgages and charges, any special resolutions passed by shareholders and a list of the names of the current directors) or to obtain copies of lists of shareholders of these companies. Pursuant to the amended and restated memorandum and articles of association of ECARX Holdings, our directors shall from time to time determine whether and to what extent and at what time and places and under what conditions or articles the accounts and books of us or any of them shall be open to the inspection of our shareholders not being directors, and none of our shareholder (not being a director) shall have any right of inspection of any account or book or document of us except as conferred by law or authorized by the directors or by special resolution of our shareholders. This may make it more difficult for you to obtain the information needed to establish any facts necessary for a shareholder motion or to solicit proxies from other shareholders in connection with a proxy contest.

Certain corporate governance practices in the Cayman Islands differ significantly from requirements for companies incorporated in other jurisdictions such as the United States. As a foreign private issuer whose securities are listed on the Nasdaq, we are permitted to follow certain home country corporate governance practices in lieu of the requirements of the Nasdaq Rules pursuant to Nasdaq Rule 5615(a)(3), which provides for such exemption to compliance with the Nasdaq Rule 5600 Series. To the extent we choose to follow home country practice with respect to corporate governance matters, our shareholders may be afforded less protection than they otherwise would under rules and regulations applicable to U.S. domestic issuers.

As a result of all of the above, our shareholders may have more difficulty in protecting their interests in the face of actions taken by management, members of the board of directors or controlling shareholders than they would as public shareholders of a company incorporated in the United States. For additional information, please see the section entitled “Enforceability of Civil Liability and Agent for Service of Process in the United States.”

We do not anticipate paying dividends for the foreseeable future.

It is expected that we will retain most, if not all, of our available funds and any future earnings to fund the development and growth of our business. As a result, it is not expected that we will pay any cash dividends in the foreseeable future.

Our board of directors will have discretion as to whether to distribute dividends. Even if the board of directors decides to declare and pay dividends, the timing, amount and form of future dividends, if any, will depend on the future results of operations and cash flow, capital requirements and surplus, the amount of distributions, if any, received by us from subsidiaries, our financial condition, contractual restrictions and other factors deemed relevant by our board of directors. Accordingly, you may need to rely on sales of our

 

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securities after price appreciation, which may never occur, as the only way to realize any future gains on your investment. There is no guarantee that our securities will appreciate in value or that the market price of our securities will not decline.

Our memorandum and articles of association contain anti-takeover provisions that could have a material adverse effect on the rights of holders of our securities.

The amended and restated memorandum and articles of association of ECARX Holdings contain provisions to limit the ability of others to acquire control of our company or cause us to engage in change-of-control transactions. These provisions could have the effect of depriving our shareholders of an opportunity to sell their shares at a premium over prevailing market prices by discouraging third parties from seeking to obtain control of our company in a tender offer or similar transaction. Our board of directors has the authority, without further action by our shareholders, to issue preferred shares in one or more series and to fix their designations, powers, preferences, privileges and relative participating, optional or special rights and the qualifications, limitations or restrictions, including dividend rights, conversion rights, voting rights, terms of redemption and liquidation preferences, any or all of which may be greater than the rights associated with our Class A Ordinary Shares. Preferred shares could be issued quickly with terms calculated to delay or prevent a change in control of our company or make removal of management more difficult. If our board of directors decides to issue preferred shares, the price of our securities may fall and the voting and other rights of the holders of our Class A Ordinary Shares may be materially and adversely affected.

We may be or become a passive foreign investment company (“PFIC”), for United States federal income tax purposes for any taxable year, which could result in adverse U.S. federal income tax consequences to U.S. Holders.

A non-U.S. entity treated as a corporation for U.S. federal income tax purposes will generally be a PFIC for U.S. federal income tax purposes for any taxable year if either (i) at least 75% of its gross income for such year is passive income or (ii) at least 50% of the value of its assets (generally based on an average of the quarterly values of the assets) during such year is attributable to assets that produce passive income or are held for the production of passive income. Passive income generally includes, among other things, dividends, interest, rents, royalties, and gains from the disposition of passive assets. We will be treated as owning its proportionate share of the assets and earning its proportionate share of the income of any other entity treated as a corporation for U.S. federal income tax purposes in which we own, directly or indirectly, 25% or more (by value) of the stock.

Based on the current and anticipated value of the assets and the composition of income and assets, including goodwill and other unbooked intangibles, we do not presently expect to be a PFIC for the current taxable year or the foreseeable future. However, this conclusion is a factual determination that must be made annually at the close of each taxable year on the basis of the composition of our income and assets and our subsidiaries’ income and assets and, thus, is subject to change. Furthermore, fluctuations in the market price of our Class A Ordinary Shares may cause us to be classified as a PFIC for the current or future taxable years because the value of our assets for purposes of the asset test, including the value of our goodwill and other unbooked intangibles, may be determined by reference to the market price of our Class A Ordinary Shares from time to time (which may be volatile). Accordingly, there can be no assurance that we or any of our subsidiaries will not be treated as a PFIC for any taxable year. If we or any of our subsidiaries is a PFIC for any taxable year, or portion thereof, that is included in the holding period of a beneficial owner of our Class A Ordinary Shares or Warrants that is a U.S. Holder, such U.S. Holder may be subject to certain adverse U.S. federal income tax consequences and may be subject to additional reporting requirements. Further, if we are a PFIC for any year during which a U.S. Holder holds our Class A Ordinary Shares or Warrants, we generally will continue to be treated as a PFIC for all succeeding years during which such U.S. Holder holds our Class A Ordinary Shares or Warrants, unless we were to cease to be a PFIC and the U.S. Holder were to make certain elections with respect to our Class A Ordinary Shares or Warrants.

For more information, please see “Taxation — U.S. Federal Income Tax Considerations — Passive Foreign Investment Company Status.” U.S. Holders are urged to consult their tax advisors regarding the possible application of the PFIC rules to holders of our Ordinary Shares or Warrants.

 

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CAPITALIZATION AND INDEBTEDNESS

The following table sets forth our cash and cash equivalents and capitalization as of June 30, 2023 on a historical basis.

The information in this table should be read in conjunction with our financial statements and the related notes thereto and other financial information included in this prospectus, any prospectus supplement or incorporated by reference in this prospectus. Our historical results do not necessarily indicate our expected results for any future periods.

 

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SELECTED HISTORICAL FINANCIAL DATA

The following tables present our selected consolidated financial data. We prepare our consolidated financial statements in accordance with U.S. GAAP. The selected consolidated statements of comprehensive loss data for the years ended December 31, 2020, 2021 and 2022, the selected consolidated balance sheet data as of December 31, 2021 and 2022, and the selected consolidated statement of cash flows data for the years ended December 31, 2020, 2021 and 2022 have been derived from our audited consolidated financial statements, which are included elsewhere in this prospectus. The selected consolidated statements of comprehensive loss data for the six months ended June 30, 2022 and 2023, the selected consolidated balance sheet data as of June 30, 2023, and the selected consolidated statement of cash flows data for the six months ended June 30, 2022 and 2023, have been derived from our unaudited condensed consolidated financial statements included elsewhere in this prospectus.

Our historical results for any prior period are not necessarily indicative of results expected in any future period.

The financial data set forth below should be read in conjunction with, and is qualified by reference to “Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operation” and the consolidated financial statements and notes thereto included elsewhere in this prospectus.

On June 30, 2023, we made additional capital injection in JICA Intelligent, an entity under common control, and increased our equity interest in JICA Intelligent from 50% to 70%.We own a controlling interest in JICA Intelligent following the additional investment. As the acquisition of JICA Intelligent was a combination between entities under common control, our consolidated financial statements as of December 31, 2022 and 2021, and for each of the years in the two-year period ended December 31, 2022 have been restated. Please see Note 29(b) of our consolidated financial statements included elsewhere in this prospectus.

Selected Consolidated Statements of Comprehensive Loss Data

 

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(1)

Shares outstanding for all periods reflect the adjustment for Recapitalization.

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Selected Consolidated Balance Sheet Data

Selected Consolidated Statement of Cash Flows Data

Financial Information Relating to the VIE

In December 2019, ECARX (Wuhan) Technology Co., Ltd. (“ECARX WH” or “WFOE”) was established in the PRC as a wholly owned subsidiary of ECARX Holdings. ECARX Holdings, through the WFOE, is the primary beneficiary of the VIEs. Since early 2022, ECARX Holdings has implemented the Restructuring. In association with the Restructuring, in April 2022 ECARX Holdings, Hubei ECARX and shareholders of Hubei ECARX entered into a VIE Termination Agreement, pursuant to which, the VIE Agreements were terminated with immediate effect.

 

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Selected Condensed Consolidating Statements of Comprehensive Income/Loss Information

The following tables present our condensed consolidating schedule depicting the consolidated statements of comprehensive loss for the fiscal years ended December 31, 2020, 2021, and 2022.