Chinese tech giant Xiaomi to launch first EV in 2024

Chinese technology company Xiaomi looks set to enter the electric vehicle market in 2024 with a sleek Tesla Model S-rivalling sedan.

According to CnEVPost, the company’s CEO, Lei Jun, said during the Chinese Government’s annual ‘two sessions’ advisory and legislative body meeting that its car project is “progressing beyond expectations” and expects mass production to start in the first half of next year.

Xiaomi is best known for its e-scooters locally, but sells an entire lineup of smartphones, wearables, televisions, smart home devices, fashion apparel, and other electronic gadgets overseas – most popular in China and India.

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Image credit: Weibo blogger @电动知士大雨

Jun said Xiaomi Automotive, which was officially registered in 2021, has more than 2300 research and development team employees, and recently completed winter testing of its first EV model.

The LatePost (translated by CnEVPost) previously reported that it’ll target the popular Tesla Model 3 small electric sedan with a price of around AU$65,000 (RMB ¥300,000), but has the performance and size of the larger Model S liftback, Nio ET7, and Xpeng P7 sedan.

An entry-level model could feature a 400-volt class charging architecture using Build Your Dreams’ (BYDs) lithium-iron-phosphate (LFP) Blade Battery, while higher-end variants may gain an 800-volt class platform with LiDAR sensors and Nvidia's Orion computing chip to prepare for a self-driving future – similar to the Polestar 3 and Volvo EX90 luxury SUVs.

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All models of the Xiaomi EV sedan are rumoured to adopt the Qualcomm Snapdragon Automotive processors and feature a large central touchscreen, typical of new Chinese-born EVs.

Electrek reports the tech giant had been talking with Chinese automakers such as BYD, Great Wall Motor (GWM) and Saic Motor (which owns MG and LDV) for potential partnerships, but it’s unclear whether they’ll eventuate.

More technology companies are entering the automotive industry as EVs become ‘computers on wheels’ and traditional car companies aim to transform into being ‘software-driven’.

Sony and Honda have partnered to launch a new Afeela EV brand in 2025, Huawei has launched plug-in hybrid and all-electric cars in collaboration with Chinese automaker Seres, and the rumour mill has been swirling for years about an Apple car potentially in development.