In March 2021 to Xiaomi It surprised the world by revealing its intention to bet on the automobile market. More specifically, through Lei Jun, CEO of the Chinese manufacturer, the brand affirmed its interest in autonomous electric cars, seeing in Tesla an inspiration and in the segment in question an area of extreme curiosity and growth opportunity.
Now, about six months after this declaration of interest, Xiaomi officially registers the trademark “Xiaomi car, thus giving birth to a new segment of Chinese technology. At the wheel is Lei Jun, along with a team of more than 300 employees dedicated to the automotive and electric mobility segment.
Xiaomi has officially registered the brand Xiaomi Automobile Co. Ltd.
Lei Jun, co-founder of Xiaomi, remains the leader of the new brand Xiaomi Automobile Co. Ltd, which oversees his company’s progress in the automotive sector. For June, it is a high-risk area, but even more promising, as the executive pointed out last March when confirming entry into this sector.
According to the announcement, over the past five months the brand has built a 300-member team. These will be the minds dedicated to Xiaomi’s first electric car, as well as all the technologies inherent in an autonomous vehicle.
Also according to the brand, more than 20,000 interested parties submitted their candidacy, and the company stated that the selection process is still ongoing. It is, therefore, one of the most ambitious bets of the Chinese brand founded in 2010, already betting on what it considers the future of technology.
The car market is Xiaomi’s new bet
Xiaomi has started negotiations with several car manufacturers to find partners in this sector. However, nothing has been signed on paper so far, and the tech company is actively seeking new partnerships.
More recently, however, the agency Reuters announced that Xiaomi was about to sign an understanding with China Evergrande. It would be the sale of 65% of the shares of the Evergrande New Energy Vehicle (NEV) Group, Xiaomi being one of the main parties interested in the acquisition.
Meanwhile, Lei Jun was spotted at various automaker headquarters in China. Among the companies visited by the Xiaomi CEO are BYD, Great Wall, Wuling, as well as other China-based automotive companies.
Xiaomi’s most ambitious project
In fact, in recent months, Xiaomi executives will have made around 90 visits and contacts to companies dedicated to the automotive sector. There were also interviews with various experts in the area, as well as several other inquisitive meetings.
In short, Xiaomi is studying the car market. The manufacturer wants to bet on high-quality autonomous electric cars with the aim of selling them globally.
It is a 10-year project with a substantial capital allocation, and the first developments are already underway.