Jia Yueting was once one of the richest people in China. The architect of a sprawling collection of companies that streamed video and made smart TVs, cellphones and electric cars, he was sometimes called the Chinese Steve Jobs. But as the stock of his main Chinese company began to fall, his borrowing ballooned, and political intrigue enveloped him, Jia pivoted toward the United States. In 2014, he secretly started an American company, Faraday Future, that aimed to build the most Internet-connected electric vehicle on the planet. Six years later, Faraday has blown through billions, hasn’t sold a single car and has faced near-death moments. Jia, who has defied orders to return to China, filed for personal bankruptcy last year owing $3.7 billion to his creditors. See the timeline below for selected moments in his career.
Credit: Faraday Future promotional materials
April 2014Jia Yueting travels to the U.S. to found Faraday Future.
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