Xiaomi has officially announced that they have registered their electric vehicle unit for around CNY 10 Billion ($1.5 Billion).
Earlier this year, the technology giant had announced that they are planning to join the automobile industry and now Xiaomi has officially registered their company under the name of Xiaomi Automobile Co., Ltd.
The founder, chairman and CEO of Xiaomi group Lei Jun will also serve as the company’s legal representative. Lei said at the time the push into electric vehicles would mark his “last major entrepreneurial project.”
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Xiaomi is aiming to offer high-quality smart electric vehicles to its users globally to enjoy ubiquitous smart life, he said.
According to the official statement issued by Xiaomi, it has conducted over 20,000 interview surveys and visited over 10 industry peers and partners. Out of these 20,000 applicants, 300 have been selected and trained to build the team for the electric car business. Xiaomi is currently hiring more people as it expands the business.
$Xiaomi finishes registration of automobile company. https://t.co/ZNCvC8bZoS pic.twitter.com/12SvgY8TAp
— Gasgoo Auto News (@Gasgoo_com) September 1, 2021
It was previously rumored that Xiaomi has been in talks with several car manufacturers for a partnership but nothing has been materialized so far. But in the recent development, it was reported that Xiaomi is looking to acquire a stake in China Evergrande’s Electric Vehicle unit.
This interest in Evergrande’s Electric Vehicle unit may also be because it was revealed that even Apple and Huawei are eyeing the electric vehicle industry. So, the new acquisition would give Xiaomi EV production facilities for its own automobile business to start ahead from its rivals.
Although the company had made an initial investment of about CNY 10 Billion, it is set to invest around 60 billion yuan over the next 10 years as the business grows.
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Xiamoi has already been making smart gadgets for the last 10 years and the company already produces electric scooters. Although Xiaomi already has some experience of the market reaction to its electric vehicles, since the electric scooters are well-known around the world, but making cars is a completely different deal on its own.
It will be interesting to see how well Xiaomi’s products do in the market against competitive giants like Tesla, BMW and Nissan. The pricing of the car is also another factor of consideration as Xiaomi’s products are well known to be budget-friendly. How much of this budget friendliness can Xiaomi manage when it comes to electric cars will be the factor that determines its ultimate success in the industry.