Electric vehicles have really taken off in China, but so has competition. That is the conundrum investors face as they size up the latest EV brands pitching their growth prospects in New York.

Lotus Technology is in the final stages of a merger with a Nasdaq-listed special-purpose acquisition company that values it at $5.5 billion. This week it said investors had committed $870 million to the deal, a step toward closure. Zeekr Intelligent Technology Holding, which raised money in February at a $13 billion valuation, filed its registration statement earlier this month for a U.S. initial public offering.