Yin Tongyue: "I hate it most" — should an automaker boss build a personal IP?

A blunt refusal at the Two Sessions

Chery (奇瑞) chairman Yin Tongyue (尹同跃), speaking to a throng of reporters during the 2026 Two Sessions, bluntly said he “hates” the idea of building a personal IP — the trend of company leaders cultivating personal brands to speak directly to consumers. The remark lands amid a wider debate in China’s auto industry: are CEO-driven personalities an effective marketing lever, or an unnecessary reputational risk? The question matters because Chinese automakers are trying to win consumers at home and markets abroad while navigating intensifying geopolitical scrutiny over trade, technology and supply chains.

Why personal IP surged — and why it can backfire

Two years ago many carmakers raced to emulate Xiaomi (小米) and its founder Lei Jun (雷军), who proved a CEO could mobilize fans and turn product feedback into influence. It has been reported that some firms staged small user meetings after sales disputes and even had founders add customers on social platforms to restore trust. But those attempts can expose internal faults as much as they placate users. One case reportedly intended to repair brand damage by bringing a company boss face-to-face with customers instead amplified complaints when details leaked online — leaving public pressure aimed at the corporate PR team.

A mixed playbook across the new and old guard

The results are mixed. New‑energy startups — NIO (蔚来)’s Li Bin (李斌), Xpeng (小鹏)’s He Xiaopeng (何小鹏), Li Auto (理想汽车)’s Li Xiang (李想) and Leapmotor (零跑)’s Zhu Jiangming (朱江明) — all use founder visibility differently: from product launches to recurring video series. Dreame Technology (追觅科技) founder Yu Hao (俞浩) reportedly leveraged a provocative personal persona to launch an auto brand and grabbed headlines with ambitious promises, for better or worse. Meanwhile Great Wall Motor (长城汽车) chairman Wei Jianjun (魏建军) has organized team-driven social output to build an “IP matrix,” and Geely (吉利) chairman Li Shufu (李书福) has largely stayed out of the latest push.

Trade‑offs for leadership branding

So what’s the takeaway? Personal IP can accelerate awareness — but only if a company truly builds the internal “user‑linked” systems that leaders’ visibility implies, as ex‑Xiaomi executive Li Wanqiang (黎万强) argued in his book on user participation. Without that operational backbone, a charismatic CEO may simply magnify problems. In an era when Chinese automakers face both domestic social media volatility and international policy scrutiny, a leader’s public persona can easily become a lightning rod. Yin’s refusal is itself a strategic choice: not every “user‑centric” company needs a marquee CEO in front of the camera to be credible.