Xiaomi enters the electric vehicle industry

With a revamped brand, Xiaomi will invest $10 billion in smart electric vehicles over the next 10 years.

Xiaomi Corporation (“Xiaomi” or the “Group”) announced in a public statement to the Hong Kong Stock Exchange (HKEX) that it has begun preparations for the production of smart electric vehicles.Founder, President and CEO of Xiaomi Lei Junannounced at its launch in March 2021 that the company will be operated by a subsidiary of Xiaomi with an initial investment of 10 billion yuan. Xiaomi plans to invest about $10 billion over the next 10 years. Lei Jun will also be CEO of the smart electric vehicle subsidiary.

Lei Jun said: “We made this decision after long negotiations between all partners. This will be the last major entrepreneurial project in my life. I am ready to put all my personal reputation on the line and fight for our smart electric car. “I am determined to lead my team throughout the fight for the success of the Xiaomi electric vehicle.” Jun also emphasized that Xiaomi’s management has conducted a very thorough and comprehensive study of the electric vehicle industry in the past 75 days, including 85 meetings with more than 200 industry experts, four internal management discussions, and two board meetings. Jun said, “Mi fans’ trust in Xiaomi’s values ​​and their continued support for the brand also played a big role in this decision. This laid an important foundation for Xiaomi to break new ground and enter the smart electric vehicle market. According to the latest financial results, our global smartphone sales reached 146 million and we are still one of the top three smartphone manufacturers in the world. Our sales of high-end smartphones have exceeded 10 million. In TV sales, we have maintained our leading position in China for 8 consecutive quarters. The Xiaomi AIoT platform has over 324.8 million connected devices. We continue to lead the smart home industry with AI assistant XiaoAI, which has 86.7 million monthly active users. By the end of 2020, the total cash reserve of our group was 108 billion yuan.”

Lei Jun emphasized in his letter to his employees that Xiaomi has different and unique advantages in car manufacturing:

1. Smart electric vehicles have radically changed the business model of the traditional automotive industry, and Xiaomi is well versed in the Internet hardware services business model.

2. Xiaomi has the most extensive software and hardware integration experience and the deepest manufacturing know-how in the Internet industry.

3. Xiaomi has the most complete intelligent ecosystem in terms of product range, product scale and user count.

4. Xiaomi has many core technologies that can be applied to smart electric vehicles.

5. Xiaomi has a strong brand and a large user base, trusted and supported by Mi fans around the world.

6. It has enough cash resources that allow Xiaomi to confidently invest in this space.

Lei Jun said: “Smart electric vehicles represent one of the biggest business opportunities in the next 10 years and an integral part of smart life. We are expanding our AIoT smart ecosystem day by day and continue our vision so that every person in the world can lead a good life with innovative technologies. Therefore, it is very natural for us to enter the electric vehicle industry.”