The Shanghai-based company claims its cars have similar performances as Tesla's, but at cheaper price. Its first commercial product—ES8 pure-electric, seven-seat sport-utility vehicle seen as a rival to Tesla's Model X—began making delivery in June 2018, and sells at a base price of 448,000 yuan, compared with Model X's base price of 920,000 yuan in China.

However, NIO faces the same type of test as Elon Musk's company does—weather it has the manufacturing capacity to deliver on its promises, as Li vowed to deliver 10,000 vehicles to customers by the year end, but fewer than 2,000 units have been delivered so far.

Uncertainties in manufacturing capability and processes, as well as the production volumes required to successfully mass market the ES8 and future vehicles listed in NIO's prospectus as risk factors.

"We cannot assure you that we will be able to develop efficient, automated, cost-efficient manufacturing capability and processes, and reliable sources of component supply that will enable us to meet the quality, price, engineering, design and production standards, as well as the production volumes required to successfully mass market the ES8 and future vehicles."

China intensified its efforts to encourage the use of new energy vehicles to ease environmental pressure by offering tax exemptions and discounts for car purchases. And the country maintained the largest NEV market for three consecutive years, with 777,000 cars sold in 2017.

NEV sales went up 49.5 percent year-on-year to 101,000 units last month, while production rose 39 percent to 99,000 units, the China Association of Automobile Manufacturers said Tuesday.

Sales of pure electric vehicles rose 31.7 percent from a year earlier in August to 73,000 units while sales of plug-in hybrid vehicles soared more than 130 percent to 28,000 units, CAAM said.