Nio‘s sub-brand Firefly released version 1.4.0 of its Aster operating system on Tuesday — its fourth major software update since deliveries began a year ago.
The new release rolled out alongside the refreshed iteration of its debut EV, which which retained its original base price of 119,800 yuan ($17,500).
The 1.4.0 update covers intelligent assisted driving and the intelligent cockpit system, while adding new features to the Lumo voice assistant.
Driver Assistance
Building on earlier updates, the system now includes mistaken-acceleration suppression, which scans for vehicles, pedestrians, or other obstacles when the car is stationary, pulling away, or moving at low speed.
If the driver presses the accelerator too quickly and a collision risk is detected, the system limits power and issues a warning.
The update also introduces an emergency rescue service that activates if the driver is in an abnormal state, such as hands off the wheel, distraction, fatigue, or leaving the seat.
In such cases, the system triggers tiered alerts, applies emergency braking, and can place a rescue call.
Intelligent Navigation Assist has been upgraded with improved logic for ramp merging, better recognition of continuous cones in diversion zones, and more accurate judgment of construction areas.
The new safety additions build on driver-assistance features rolled out in earlier Aster OS updates.
Last August, Aster 1.1.0 added incident and turn-blind-spot imaging.
Version 1.2.0, released in September, introduced Rear Collision Warning (RCW) and optimized assisted driving in heavy rain.
Late last year, a door-opening visual warning with side and rear camera views was also added in v1.3.0.
Parking and Navigation
Parking support has also been upgraded with a new Trace Reverse function.
It allows vehicles to record and retrace their path in narrow alleys, dead-end roads, and complex parking lots at speeds below 30 km/h.
Vision-fusion parking assist now lets drivers select left-biased, centered, or right-biased positioning within a parking space rather than relying solely on automatic centering.
Firefly‘s latest software update introduced a new Parking Assistant that provides full-trip parking spot searches, previews of destination parking lots, and parking recommendations.
Navigation improvements include a cruise traffic light feature that displays real-time traffic light countdowns without active route guidance.
Cockpit
Firefly has introduced new features, including the Panoramic Vehicle Finder, and improved existing functions such as Start-up Surround View and Sentry Mode.
The Panoramic Vehicle Finder captures images of the car’s surroundings after it is locked, automatically anonymizing faces and license plates.
Meanwhile, Start-up Surround View now activates the 360-degree camera automatically when the car is about to move, helping drivers judge clearance in tight spaces.
Sentry Mode has also been optimized, with Firefly reworking its power-consumption logic to reduce impact on driving range.
Entertainment options have expanded as well, with users now being able to cast games via a USB capture card, enabling connection of a Nintendo Switch console to the in-car display.
Customizable lock sounds and a new Firefly Band ambient ring allow users to upload audio files, play notes or chords, and enjoy preset tracks. Nio Radio is also available.
These cockpit upgrades follow earlier versions’ inclusion of wireless Apple CarPlay, battery preheating, a dedicated passenger media panel, wash mode, and multi-language support.
Lumo
Firefly‘s voice assistant ‘Lumo’ has been progressively expanded through earlier Aster OS releases, with Aster 1.2.0 adding an on-screen ‘Lumo’ interaction display with emoji responses and improved voice control.
The voice assistant received the largest number of individual additions in the 1.4.0 update.
Lumo can now switch between driving modes by voice command, including personalized and gentle modes.
Users can delete navigation waypoints by voice, and voice control of the headlights has been refined.
Firefly has also upgraded the underlying ‘Lumo GPT’ model, which it says delivers more fluent, conversational dialogue and more direct answers.
Refreshed Model
Firefly’s revamped model added new colour options and a free over-the-air (OTA) motor power upgrade that will be pushed to all existing owners in mid-May.
The headline feature is a software-only motor power upgrade to 120 kW — available at no cost to every Firefly owner.
The updated model adds a blue exterior indicator light that illuminates when the assisted driving system is engaged, signalling the vehicle’s status to surrounding road users.
The same feature appeared last week on facelifted versions of Nio’s ET5, ET5T, ES6, and EC6.
Firefly said these hardware-related features will also be offered as retrofit upgrades to existing owners, with details to follow.
Firefly Sales
After monthly volumes peaked above 7,000 units in December, Firefly saw deliveries slumped in January and February.
Monthly figures rebounded to 6,119 units in March — the brand’s second-strongest month on record.
Firefly‘s brand chief Daniel Jin acknowledged late last month that the brand had faced a challenging start to the year while maintaining its expansion targets.
The sub-brand delivered 11,583 vehicles in the first quarter — and crossed 50,000 cumulative units on March 28, eleven months after deliveries began.
That pace remains well below Jin’s stated target of 100,000 deliveries by year-end.
The executive set an internal goal of 6,000 to 6,500 monthly deliveries from the second quarter onward.
The brand continues to make up only a small share of Nio Group‘s deliveries, accounting for 13.9% of registrations in the first quarter and 17.2% in March alone.
Firefly has been positioned as Nio Group‘s lead brand for international expansion.
The brand recently launched in Thailand and Costa Rica — Nio‘s first market in the Americas and, according to Li, the first overseas location to offer all three of the group’s brands under one roof.
In Europe, where Firefly debuted in mid-August 2025 with deliveries in the Netherlands and Norway, sales remain modest.
It remains unclear whether — and when — the revamped version of the Firefly EV will debut in overseas markets.
The company will unveil its upcoming flagship SUV — the ES9 — on Thursday.
