A Chinese automaker has unveiled a new EV, but Faraday Future is quick to point out some glaring similarities.
Chinese automaker NIO made headlines earlier this year with its admittedly stunning EP9 supercar, which not only set the fastest lap record at the Nurburgring for an EV, but also recorded the fastest self-driving lap at the Circuit of the Americas in Austin, Texas. But the NIO EP9 is a halo model for the brand, certainly not something obtainable by the average consumer. That’s where the EVE Concept comes into play, a more consumer-friendly offering that the automaker hopes to put into production by 2020.
It was presented at SXSW and the company says it’s designed to be an autonomous “digital companion” with an artificial intelligence engine called NOMI. The AI serves as the car’s “human interface,” and will help control the autonomous car, function as a DJ and continuously personalize the vehicle the more it learns about its passengers.
SEE ALSO: World’s Fastest Electric Car is Now Also the Fastest Self-Driving Car
If you think the EVE Concept looks vaguely familiar to another recently introduced EV, you’re not entirely wrong. Faraday Future unveiled its FF 91 earlier this year and the automaker didn’t hesitate to call it out.
“Imitation is the highest form of flattery, but poor clones get it wrong because we are promoting individuality” https://t.co/lCFMwySQlo
— Nick Sampson (@NickSampsonFF) March 11, 2017
For now, it’s more interesting to see if either the Faraday Future FF 91 or NIO EVE Concept make it to production. Only then can we really tell if one company copied the other.
