Electric car brand HiPhi is one of China’s newest car manufacturers, established in July 2019, but it hasn’t wasted any time. By 2022, the Human Horizons startup headquartered in Shanghai had already managed to release as many as two models. And by 2023 – three!
The story of the ambitious HiPhi brand began on July 31, 2019. The brand was created by Human Horizons along with its first concept car, the HiPhi 1. For this purpose, the company even introduced a new concept in the automobile industry – TechLuxe (fusion of innovative technologies and luxury). In April 2020, the first HiPhi branded store opened in Lujiazui, Shanghai, and in July 2022, their entire chain, which consists of 33 showrooms located in 27 cities across the country.
Behind Human Horizons is businessman Ding Lei, who has been in the automobile business for almost 40 years. He started his career at the Shanghai Volkswagen joint venture, later joined SAIC, participated in the LeSEE electric car project, and was one of the founders of the Shanghai Free Trade Zone.
The first HiPhi X model was officially available in the Chinese market in October 2020, and the first batch of production cars was delivered in May 2021. According to the monthly car sales report published by the China Automotive Technology and Research Center, the HiPhi X could become the best-selling premium electric car in China as of September 2021, pushing the Porsche Taycan electric sedan into second place.
HiPhi cars form new standards of a premium class of the XXI century. Each of the brand’s cars embodies the ideas of technical progress, where quality materials and proven solutions are tightly intertwined with futuristic design solutions. The HiPhi model lineup is represented by two crossovers and a sports sedan, which are ideal for those seeking new impressions and emotions.
HiPhi is also developing a network of charging stations, known as HiPhi Station, to provide convenience to HiPhi electric vehicle owners.
Since its inception, HiPhi has received significant attention and investment both in China and abroad. They aim to become a leader in premium electric vehicles and make significant contributions to the automotive industry with their innovative and environmentally friendly technologies.
What is HiPhi?
HiPhi is the name of a Chinese automotive brand founded in 2018 by Human Horizons. The brand was established to develop and manufacture premium electric cars and develop new technologies for the automotive industry.
In terms of visual identity, HiPhi is very progressive and even futuristic. The logo of the brand is as unusual as its name. The original name HiPhi is derived from the English “Hi”, and “Phi” – an adopted brand symbol with its own mark.
The “Phi” in the name of the brand is an allusion to the golden section employing the Greek letter “phi”, which incidentally is the brand’s logo. The HiPhi logo consists of two parts: the minimalistic emblem and the stylized logotype, placed under it. The emblem is composed of two rounded brackets placed on the sides of a bold vertical line. As for the inscription, it is set in smooth bars with softened ends, which form the futuristic shapes of the characters. The logo is set in a strict black-and-white color palette.
The custom title case lettering from the primary HiPhi logo is set in a futuristic sans-serif typeface with open contours of the capital “P” and the rounded ends of the bars. The unique designer font of the HiPhi insignia looks somewhat close to such commercial typefaces as Cypher 7 or Techstencil Expanded Regular but with significant modifications.
As for the color palette of the HiPhi visual identity, it is based on the minimalistic combination of black and white, which is a perfect representation of the brand’s progressiveness. The less the better, and the company emphasizes not on its colorful logo, but on the quality and design of its vehicles.