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On April 20, at the historic shipyard site on the banks of the Yangtze River in Wuhu, the all-new global pickup brand RELY was officially launched. Blending Eastern philosophy with technological revolution, this launch event serves a dual purpose. Firstly, it formally signals RELY's entry and commencement into the global pickup market as a new Chinese brand. Secondly, it establishes a third path for global pickups. This path offers an alternative to traditional internal combustion engine (ICE) performance-centrism and radical New Energy approaches, focusing instead on technology-inclusive global pickups.
RELY Brand Launch Event
Chinese Pickups Face Three Major Missions, Chery Commits to the Challenge
Currently, the Chinese automotive market ranks first globally with production and sales attaining 31 million units. However, within the pickup segment, Chinese pickups have contended globally for years but have struggled to significantly expand their global presence and have not established a cultural footprint.
Firstly, data from the China Association of Automobile Manufacturers (CAAM) indicates that, as of 2024, the penetration rate of New Energy Vehicles (NEVs) in the Chinese pickup market is less than 5%, significantly lower than the overall level in the commercial vehicle market. Chinese pickups need to achieve breakthroughs, transitioning from large-displacement internal combustion engines and single energy sources to multi-powertrain system innovation, fostering the establishment of diversified, all-domain platforms.
Secondly, based on CAAM data, domestic pickup exports surged by 53.21% year-on-year last year, delivering a striking performance. However, the industry value generated by Chinese pickups in overseas markets remains limited. It is imperative to reshape the profile of Chinese pickup exports by leveraging technological innovation to drive the creation of new scenarios and demands, thereby establishing new value for Chinese pickups.
Furthermore, statistics from the China Passenger Car Association (CPCA) show that in 2024, Chinese pickup exports constituted 45% of total Chinese pickup sales. However, the absence of a robust pickup culture results in a lack of pricing power. There is a pressing need to address the lack of global recognition and influence for Chinese pickups by enabling brands to achieve technological parity and thus build their reputation based on intrinsic merit.
Confronting this market reality, Chery presents a decisive and clear solution: employing technology inclusion to dismantle cognitive barriers and facilitating value reconstruction to ignite cultural resonance. Drawing upon Chery's 28 years of technological foundation, the aim is to realize technological parity in the pickup sector, allowing global users to benefit from the advancements in New Energy and intelligent technologies. As Yin Tongyue, Party Secretary and Chairman of Chery Holding Group, articulated: "We are relaunching the RELY brand, entrusting it with a new mission – to become a value benchmark for global New Energy and intelligent pickups, showcasing the unique value of Chinese pickups to the world."
Yin Tongyue, Party Secretary and Chairman of Chery Holding Group, Delivers Speech
Chery's confidence stems from its profound deep reserves in technology and culture, possessing two major genes: technology inclusion and cultural integration.
Regarding technology, for 28 years, the Chery brand has been dedicated to the proliferation of automobiles, New Energy, and intelligent technologies. This entails a transition from innovation in China to global adaptation, implementing a dual strategy of technological inclusion that ensures technology is accessible to the broadest and most deserving demographics. Supported by Chery's cutting-edge technologies, including the Mars Architecture, Kunpeng Power, Lion Cockpit, and Falcon Intelligent Drive, RELY pickup products are inherently endowed with a robust technological DNA.
Regarding its culture landscape, Chery has established production bases and R&D networks in over 110 countries and regions worldwide, deeply embedding the DNA of "Intelligent Manufacturing in China" into the global automotive landscape. As a leading entity in Chinese auto exports, Chery has ranked first in export volume among Chinese passenger car brands for 22 consecutive years. It is pursuing a deep globalization strategy of "entering markets and ascending the value chain," moving from mere product export towards brand co-creation and symbiosis. Chery's global coverage and localization practices have fostered its brand's capacity for cultural integration. This gene is integrated into RELY pickups, positioning them as cultural bridges rather than disruptors of established conventions.
RELY Emerges Opportunely, Building a Technology-Inclusive Global Brand
Zhang Jiaming, General Manager of the RELY Pickup Brand Business Unit, Delivers Speech
How will RELY, as a newly unveiled global pickup brand, fulfill the global mission of Chinese pickups? Zhang Jiaming, General Manager of the RELY Pickup Brand Business Unit, stated in response: RELY will align itself with the positioning of a "Global Pickup Intelligent Ecosystem Brand," adopting the brand slogan "Intelligentize The World " and promising "ensuring technology will never take sides." By charting a third avenue grounded in Eastern wisdom, it endeavors to forge a path for technology-inclusive global pickups.
Tech Will Never Take Sides
As a new brand, RELY, founded upon the core brand values of "Trust, Inclusion, and Sharing," is underpinned by four strategic pillars: Rebuilding the pickup ecosystem, Exploring untraversed domains, Linking vehicles and everything, and Yielding shared value for win-win outcomes. These pillars empower the brand through software and hardware ecosystems, new technologies/products, scenario-based intelligence, and user value.
RELY Brand
The brand will draw upon the auspicious philosophy of the Kylin: the benevolent beast described as "hooves that do not tread on living beings, horns that do not touch anything." This is a metaphor for the essence of Eastern pickups – powerful yet not overbearing, intelligent and committed to coexistence. True strength is not measured by dominion, but about technology becoming the protective armor for all life. With the heart of "benevolence", RELY extends gentle guardianship to the world.
Regarding its product line, RELY will offer a full spectrum encompassing Internal Combustion Engine (ICE), Battery Electric Vehicle (BEV), and Hybrid Electric Vehicle (HEV) powertrains, aiming for comprehensive category coverage and global deployment. Over the next four years, at the rate of one new product series annually, it will progressively establish four primary product matrices, resulting in a portfolio of 16 differentiated configurations designed to address 8 core scenarios and over 120 sub-scenarios. This comprehensive approach will forge a multi-dimensional product ecosystem catering to "all scenarios, all powertrains, and all user groups." These products will adopt a unique design language, imbuing the inspiration of power from Chinese Kylin culture with a more dynamic expression of Chinese wisdom.
RELY Kaitian All-Scenario Intelligent Vehicle Technology Platform
Regarding technology, RELY presents its "RELY Kaitian" platform, an all-scenario intelligent vehicle technology platform specifically engineered and extensively tailored for the pickup segment. This platform redefines the standards for pickup intelligence based on a "One Core, Three Drives" concept. By integrating a deeply AI-driven Electronic/Electrical Architecture (EEA), the industry's inaugural diesel-hybrid technology, intelligent chassis systems, and four-dimensional synergy with pickup-specific intelligent scenario experiences, it establishes a comprehensive pickup technology ecosystem designed to meet the demands of all terrain conditions, energy types, and usage scenarios.
Regarding global strategy and deployment, RELY capitalizes on Chery's extensive global R&D network and its extensive user base of 16 million. It aims to establish a global pickup value system guided by the philosophy of "Global Wisdom + Local Warmth." By adhering to the tenets of "Global Standards + Regional Adaptation," the brand seeks to enhance the rate of localization and translate value chain cost advantages into benefits for users. Concurrently, RELY is launching the "RELY Boundless Plan", collaborating with its global user base to co-create over 100 cross-scenario solutions within three years. These solutions will encompass areas such as extreme environment adaptability, product iteration and upgrades, urban-rural versatility, and multicultural integration, thereby reshaping the global pickup industry through technology inclusion and user co-creation.
Establishing Three Major IPs to Build a New Global Pickup Culture Ecosystem
Weiyan Think Tank
At the launch event, RELY announced the introduction of three key intellectual properties (IPs): the Industry IP "Weiyan Think Tank", the Cultural IP "Ling Guang Global Intangible Cultural Heritage Innovation", and the User IP "Qi Ji Global Roadbook". Through the export of technical standards and the construction of a cultural "New Silk Road," RELY aims to build a new paradigm for global technology inclusion. Notably, the "Weiyan Think Tank", jointly established by RELY and the China Automotive Technology and Research Center, represents more than mere internal strategy implementation but a collaborative action initiated with global industry partners, institutions, and academic bodies to reconstruct pickup culture and industry standards. Furthermore, "Ling Guang Global Intangible Cultural Heritage Innovation" and "Qi Ji Global Roadbook" will help forge a cultural "New Silk Road," assisting the brand in promoting cultural parity and building a new paradigm benefiting global users.
At a juncture marked by the prominent rise in domestic pickup sales and robust growth in overseas exports, the advent of the RELY brand is particularly timely. This brand represents a strategic commitment that leverages Chery's substantial New Energy technology reserves and its extensive global sales network. With the promise, "Where RELY journeys, technology encounters no high walls," this revolution of technological parity, originating in the East, is poised to flow like the Yangtze River, carving new channels across the global landscape of pickup culture for this era.