Xiaomi is the newest tech giant to join the electric car space, as it announced its EV ambition last week. Not too long after that, today a company executive revealed some more details.
In a live-stream session on Douyin (Chinese TikTok), Xiaomi founder Lei Jun revealed findings from a poll conducted on Weibo and shed light on the first Xiaomi electric car. The discussion was a part of Xiaomi’s 11th-anniversary celebrations.
“The first car will either be a sedan or an SUV, and definitely not a sports car or a motorhome”, confirmed Jun while sharing the results of a poll in which 15,000 people participated. About 40% of them voted for SUV while 45% chose sedan.
More interestingly, he also confirmed that the Xiaomi electric car will be priced between CNY 1,00,000 and CNY 3,00,000 (approximately Rs 11 lac to 35 lac). This was once again in line with the poll results, as two-thirds of the respondents wanted a vehicle in this segment. “People want Xiaomi to make mid-tier to high-end EVs,” Lei said.
For context, the new made in China Tesla Model 3 starts at CNY 2,50,000 while the Hongguang Mini EV starts at CNY 30,000. They are the two best-selling EVs in the country.
Jun even tried to get some market feedback on how the Xiaomi electric car should be branded — as a Mi product or under another sub-brand — to which most netizens showed a preference for the former. He believes that the new squircle Xiaomi logo would fit well on a car.
Lei said that it only took about 75 days of research and discussion before deciding to proceed with the electric vehicle division. However, he’s been dabbling in the industry for a while, being an early investor in EV startups such as Xpeng and Nio as well as shares close ties with Elon Musk.
A lot is yet to be known about Xiaomi’s EV project, and it is expected to take about three years before the first vehicle hits the roads. By then, the competition is likely to get fiercer with offerings such as the Tesla Model 2 and Apple car.