Xiaomi CEO says base model SU7 will cost 215,900 yuan ($29,868)
Beijing China:
Chinese consumer technology giant Xiaomi launched its first electric car in Beijing on Thursday, thrusting itself into fierce competition in the world’s largest car market.
China’s electric vehicle industry has grown rapidly in recent years, driven by the removal of car purchase subsidies at the end of 2022, and dozens of domestic automakers are engaged in a fierce price war to gain leadership in a crowded market.
Xiaomi is known for its affordable smartphones and home appliances, and CEO Lei Jun said he is now putting his “reputation” on the line with the SU7 EV to challenge Chinese auto giant BYD and Elon Musk’s Tesla.
The base model of the SU7 will be priced at 215,900 yuan ($29,868), Lei Jun said at a grand launch event in Beijing on Thursday night.
The stylish, sporty SU7 will be available in nine colors and include “sound simulation” that Lei Jun said “recreates the thrill of driving a sports car.”
It also offers many other gadgets such as karaoke equipment and a mini fridge.
Xiaomi promises to be the “best-looking, best-driving, and smartest car” under 500,000 yuan.
“The 200,000 yuan to 250,000 yuan range is actually the most competitive market segment in China’s electric vehicle space right now,” Jefferies Financial Group Inc. analyst Johnson Wan told Bloomberg. “
Lei Jun said at a news conference on Thursday that his company’s first car is comparable to Tesla’s Model 3 and in some ways surpasses the U.S. manufacturer’s sedans.
“I think we can provide a better product for Model 3 users,” he said.
Xiaomi is the world’s third-largest smartphone maker and its experience in the field helps shape its electric vehicle strategy.
Xiaomi President Lu Weibing told CNBC last month that about 20 million people use the company’s high-end smartphones, a number that helped it price the SU7.
“I think the initial buyers will very much overlap with smartphone users. That’s our strategy,” Lu said.
highly competitive market
“By entering the premium segment, Xiaomi can carve out a niche amid competition from established brands such as Tesla and NIO,” Rystad Energy senior electric vehicle analyst Abhishek Murali told AFP. .”
“By offering high-quality EVs to affluent Chinese consumers, Xiaomi has the potential to offset the high manufacturing costs typically faced by EV startups,” Murali said.
China is the world’s largest producer of greenhouse gases, but officials plan that by 2035 the majority of domestic car sales will consist of electric and hybrid models.
The launch of the SU7 comes just days after BYD, the world’s largest seller of electric cars, posted record annual profits as the company ramps up its overseas expansion into Southeast Asian countries and further afield such as Latin America and Europe.
In a note to the financial report, BYD CEO Wang Chuanfu acknowledged that the year had not been smooth sailing.
He wrote: “At the beginning of the year, affected by changes in promotional policies and market price fluctuations, the recovery of automobile consumption was relatively lagging behind.”
Xpeng Motors, one of BYD’s biggest rivals in China, last week reported a net loss of 10.4 billion yuan in 2023.
Evergrande New Energy Automobile, a unit of debt-ridden real estate group, said on Wednesday it had delivered just 1,389 vehicles since launch, further underscoring the challenges facing the industry.
When it first started in 2019, the company set itself a “three to five-year” goal to become the world’s “most powerful” electric vehicle manufacturer.
But the company is now fighting for survival amid setbacks at its parent company and dismal sales.
(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)
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