Aion, a sub brand of Chinese automotive giant GAC, is poised to unveil a new sportscar codenamed AS9. The car evolved from the Enpulse concept car designed by the Advanced Design studio in Los Angeles headed up by Pontus Fontaeus. This is, however, is an amped up version – a super sports car according to VP of design GAC Fan Zhang. Wider and with a hard top replacing the roadster approach taken with the Enpulse, the car is a halo project by the fledgling brand, which is just 5 years old. As Zhang explains, the project marks a significant evolution of the Aion brand, not to mention a win for the design team who lobbied hard at boardroom level.  

Car Design News’ James McLachlan spoke to Fan and Pontus about the new car, how design needs to be voice in the boardroom and why digital design and shared data was crucial to the success of the project.