Autonomous driving technology xiaomi based on a self-developed algorithm was revealed in the first R&D update during the annual speech of lei jun. It was during the last speech of the Xiaomi executive that we learned of one of his greatest assets to, in the future, compete directly with Elon Musk’s Tesla.
In fact, we are witnessing a state of play in the state of development of the Xiaomi pilot technology. It was, in fact, in the first update of R+D+i and professionals that technology shared this Advance. It is a big step since it announced its entry into the smart electric vehicle segment. He did it in March 2021, about 500 days ago.
500 days later, this is the state of Xiaomi Pilot Technology
The company plans to invest more than 475 million euros in the first R&D phase of its autonomous driving technology. In addition, it has established a team of more than 500 world-class professionals.
Through a series of valuable acquisitions and strategic investments in upstream and downstream companies, Xiaomi has also been able to steadily develop its medium- and long-term industrial capabilities in the field of autonomous driving.
During the press conference, Xiaomi also released a live video of a road test of its self-driving technology. It does this by demonstrating its advanced algorithms and ability to handle a full list of scenarios.
More than 475 million euros in the first phase of R&D
“Xiaomi’s autonomous driving technology takes a self-developed full stack and the project progressed beyond expectations,” said Lei Jun, Founder, President and CEO of Xiaomi.
Thus, the first investment in the R&D phase of more than 475 million euros is expected in one of the most ambitious projects in the history of Xiaomi. It will be accompanied by the recruitment and delivery of talent throughout the industry.
Since announcing its entry into the intelligent electric vehicle industry, Xiaomi has remained committed to entering the field of autonomous driving.
The company has made significant progress by allocating a large amount of resources to R&D. This, in addition to selectively recruiting the best talent in the industry and investing in upstream and downstream companies.
There are more than 500 employees in Xiaomi’s most ambitious department
As revealed by Lei Jun, Xiaomi plans to invest more than 475 million euros. This first phase of R&D of its autonomous driving technology and the size of the dedicated team now exceeds 500 employees. By the end of the year, the team is expected to continue to grow to more than 600 people.
Since its official inception last year, Xiaomi’s autonomous driving team has attracted many of the top professionals in the industry. Currently, the department 500 members incorporate 50 industry experts and a team with an exceptional formation. Already with more than 70% with master’s degrees or doctorates.
Key team members have experience working for some of the most celebrated companies in the field of Artificial Intelligence (AI).
His professional knowledge covers all areas required to develop Xiaomi’s self-developed autonomous driving technology. This includes sensors, chips, algorithms, simulations, toolchain, data platform and more.
Autonomous driving is one of Xiaomi’s biggest challenges
Xiaomi has fully acquired Shendong Technology autonomous driving technology. He did so with the aim of improving his technological knowledge of autonomous driving and his talent pool.
In addition, the company is also committed to developing its strategic industrial capacities in the medium and long term, investing more than 285 million euros in more than ten upstream and downstream companies in the field of autonomous driving.
According to Xiaomi itself, these companies cover a variety of categories, such as sensors, actuators, domain controllers, and more.
Self-developed algorithm, aiming to become a leader in the intelligent electric vehicle industry by 2024
Xiaomi takes an approach full stack car developed for autonomous driving technology. Therefore, it covers all core areas such as hardware and software development, perception and positioning, and focuses on large-scale solutions to enable full closed-loop data capabilities.
This approach allows autonomous driving algorithms to rapidly iterate based on user needs. Above in the demo video, Xiaomi’s test vehicle showed precise, safe and intelligent assisted driving in multiple scenarios. This includes U-turns, roundabouts, and drop offs.
Also, with an emphasis on parking, Xiaomi’s autonomous driving team announced an innovative automatic parking solution.
Something that covers scenarios like “reserved parking spaces”, “autonomous valet”. Also noteworthy is the “automatic loading with a robotic arm”.
In the future, Xiaomi notes, other parking services will be available. In addition, to comply with relevant national laws and regulations, a combination of AI and service-oriented functions will be added.
Xiaomi plans to create a fleet of 140 test electric vehicles
Lei Jun also mentioned that Xiaomi plans to create a fleet of 140 test vehicles in the first phase of its self-driving technology development. These will be individually tested nationally, with the goal of becoming leaders in the smart electric vehicle industry by 2024.
In addition to using internal resources, the Xiaomi Auto team also receives strong support from various other teams within Xiaomi. Among these, we highlight the Xiaomi AI Lab, the XiaoAi AI Assistant team and the Smartphone Camera team. All to create together a state-of-the-art autonomous driving experience.
In short, in just over a year, Xiaomi’s autonomous driving technology has made significant progress. In fact, it has become a new force that attracts considerable attention from the industry.