There were already rumors floating around that Xiaomi is set to enter the electric vehicle business, and now, the company has officially announced the commencement of its Smart Electric Vehicle business.
According to the announcement, Xiaomi will be setting up a wholly-owned subsidiary with an initial investment of RMB10 billion, and a total investment amount of an estimated USD10 billion, over the course of the next 10 years. The company’s CEO, Lei Jun, will also be the CEO of the Smart Electric Vehicle business.
“The decision was made after numerous rounds of deliberation among all our Partners, and this will be the final major entrepreneurial project of my life. I am willing to put all my personal reputation on the line and fight for the future of our smart electric vehicle! I am determined to lead my team to fight for the success of the Xiaomi electric vehicle.”
“Smart electric vehicles represent one of the largest business opportunities in the next decade and represent an indispensable component of smart living. Entering this business is a natural choice for us as we expand our smart AIoT ecosystem and fulfill our mission of letting everyone in the world enjoy a better life through innovative technology.”
– Lei Jun, Xiaomi CEO
It was also revealed that in the past 75 days, Xiaomi’s executive teams have been at it in terms of research into the electric vehicle industry, and that Mi Fans continuous support and trust in the company also played a key role in its final decision.
This is a big step forward for the brand, and we can’t wait to see its very first product for this new venture!
Emman has been writing technical and feature articles since 2010. Prior to this, he became one of the instructors at Asia Pacific College in 2008, and eventually landed a job as Business Analyst and Technical Writer at Integrated Open Source Solutions for almost 3 years.
