Ji Yue: owner, models, markets and what the name means
Facts checked United States status as of 4 September 2026
- Electric-native
- defunct
Ji Yue was the car brand of a Geely-Baidu venture, and its short life is a case study in what happens when a Chinese carmaking licence and the money behind it come apart. Baidu and Geely announced a partnership in April 2021 and set up Jidu Auto, into which Baidu put the software and autonomous-driving work and Geely the vehicle engineering. Jidu did not hold a manufacturing licence, so in August 2023 the cars were moved to a new entity and a new name, Ji Yue, with Geely holding 65% and Baidu 35% — a reversal of the original split, in which Baidu held 55%.
Two cars reached the market: the Ji Yue 01 mid-size SUV, on pre-sale from October 2022 and launched in 2023, and the Ji Yue 07 saloon, launched in September 2024 at CN¥209,900 with Baidu's Apollo software. Sales through November 2024 were 13,834 units.
The end came in three days. Rumours of disbandment spread on 10 December 2024. On 11 December chief executive Xia Yiping told staff by video that the company would merge duplicated departments and cut projects that would not improve its finances in the short term. On 12 December the company disbanded; in confrontations with employees Xia said severance amounts were not settled and social insurance could not be paid, and staff removed office equipment. Reporting at the time said Baidu's October 2024 audit had found a roughly RMB 7bn gap and declined to invest further, that Geely had stopped building cars for the venture in November, and that the chief financial officer had left with company records.
Ji Yue is listed here without a parent group, because neither Geely nor Baidu owned it alone; both are recorded as former owners of the brand.
A joint venture: Geely Holding 65%, Baidu 35%, restructured from an original split of Baidu 55% / Geely 45%. It sits under no parent group here because neither owner controlled it alone.
Operations collapsed in December 2024. Rumours of disbandment circulated on 10 December; the chief executive told staff on 11 December that duplicate departments would be merged and unprofitable projects cut; the company disbanded on 12 December, with severance amounts unresolved and social insurance payments unpaid. Geely had stopped building cars for the venture in November 2024.
Key facts
| Chinese name | 极越 “jee-YWEH” 极 jí 'extreme, utmost' + 越 yuè 'to surpass' — roughly 'surpassing to the utmost' |
|---|---|
| Also written | Jiyue, JiYue and Jidu |
| Owner | Independent |
| Founded | 2023 |
| Headquarters | Shanghai, China |
| Origin | China |
| First car | Ji Yue 01, 2023 |
| Vehicles | Cars |
| Segment | Electric-vehicle start-up |
| United States | Never sold in the United States — Ji Yue was never sold outside China. |
| Ownership | Geely Holding 65%, Baidu 35% from August 2023; originally Baidu 55% / Geely 45% as Jidu Auto |
| Origin | Baidu and Geely announced their partnership in April 2021 and formed Jidu Auto; Ji Yue was created in 2023 because Jidu had no manufacturing licence |
| Models | Ji Yue 01 SUV (pre-sales from October 2022) and Ji Yue 07 saloon (launched September 2024 at CN¥209,900) |
| Sales | 13,834 units through November 2024 |
| Collapse | Disbanded 12 December 2024, a day after the chief executive announced cuts and two days after disbandment rumours began |
| What triggered it | Baidu's October 2024 audit was reported to have found a gap of about RMB 7bn and declined further investment; Geely stopped building cars for the venture in November 2024 |
Who owns Ji Yue?
Former owners
Holdings that have ended. They are here because the story needs them and are never part of the current tree.
Geely Holding formerly held Ji Yue at 65% from August 2023 until December 2024.
Geely held the majority of the Ji Yue venture from its creation in August 2023, having held 45% of the predecessor Jidu Auto. It stopped building cars for the venture in November 2024, and Ji Yue disbanded on 12 December 2024. Recorded as former because the brand no longer operates; the joint-venture entity's formal status was not verified.
Baidu, Inc. formerly held Ji Yue at 35% from August 2023 until December 2024.
Baidu supplied the software and autonomous-driving stack and held 35% of Ji Yue, down from 55% of the predecessor Jidu Auto. Reporting at the time said a Baidu audit in October 2024 found a gap of about RMB 7bn and that Baidu declined to invest further; the brand disbanded on 12 December 2024.
The full ownership page for Ji Yue · Is Ji Yue Chinese?
Where Ji Yue is sold
Recorded in 1 market : CN. Where a company publishes only its principal markets, that is a floor and not a complete list.
| Country | Code | Market page |
|---|---|---|
| China | CN | no page yet |
Ji Yue: questions people ask
- Who owned Ji Yue?
- Geely Holding held 65% and Baidu 35%. The original venture, Jidu Auto, had been 55% Baidu and 45% Geely; the split was reversed when Ji Yue was created in 2023.
- What happened to Ji Yue?
- It disbanded on 12 December 2024, two days after disbandment rumours began and a day after the chief executive announced cuts to staff. Reporting said Baidu had declined further funding after an audit found a roughly RMB 7bn gap and that Geely had stopped building the cars in November.
- Is Ji Yue the same as Jidu?
- Effectively yes. Jidu (集度) was the original Baidu-Geely venture from 2021. Because it had no car-manufacturing licence, the cars were sold from 2023 under a new entity called Ji Yue (极越), and Jidu moved to technology work.
- What happens to people who bought a Ji Yue?
- Owners were left with cars from a company that no longer existed. Advice circulating at the time was to use the physical NFC and UWB key functions rather than the app, since app unlocking depends on network services that could stop.
Related
Sources for Ji Yue
- CarNewsChina, Jiyue – high speed car crash of a brand owned by Geely and Baidu. Read . Day-by-day collapse timeline, ownership split, sales figure and the Baidu audit report
- Wikipedia, Ji Yue. Read . Formation, the Jidu history and the manufacturing-licence reason for the new entity, models and dates
- CnEVPost, Jiyue reshuffles team as operation faces difficulties. Read . Report of 11 December 2024 on the chief executive's restructuring announcement; listed on CnEVPost's Jiyue tag page