Xiaomi confirms the arrival of its car from the beginning of 2024. Objective 300,000 vehicles in one year!
In a few months, not only Xiaomi scooters will be allowed to ride on the road. The Chinese manufacturer is entering the final phase of the design of its first 100% electric car. The project holds a major place in Xiaomi’s global strategy and the CEO, Lei Jun, would be personally involved in the development of this new extraordinary product. It was he himself who announced the production of the vehicle in the first quarter of 2024.
During a meeting devoted to investors, a Investor Day at Tesla, Lei Jun explained that Xiaomi’s electric car project had been accelerated in recent months, particularly through the recruitment of hundreds of engineers. The R&D team dedicated to the project now exceeds 2,300 members, which says a lot about the manufacturer’s strike force, but also about its ambitions in the automotive industry. According to the CEO of Xiaomi, the market launch of the MS11 model is planned as early as 2024. The objective would be to reach mass production during the first quarter of next year. Xiaomi wants to produce, in its factory in Yizhuang, near Beijing, around 300,000 vehicles in its first year.
Same recipe as for smartphones?
While the design of the MS11, the name of this first model, leaked a few days ago, Xiaomi explains that it is currently in the testing phase of its vehicles, which implies that their development would be almost finished. Lei Jun explains that the group wants to run no less than 140 vehicles during the months preceding the marketing in order to collect as much data as possible.
In development since 2021, the MS11 still keeps a good part of its secret characteristics. If it is accepted that the battery will be supplied by CATL, we still know very little about the capabilities of the powertrain and especially about the on-board electronics. Because it is on this point that Xiaomi could make the difference. A key player in the new technologies sector, the group intends to put its know-how at the service of its automotive conquest project. Lei Jun does not say anything else when he explains that the car offers new sales opportunities beyond the scope of the simple product.
Finally, Xiaomi knows that it is particularly expected on one last criterion: the price. Accustomed to charging very aggressive prices when investing in a market (smartphones, electric scooters and even robot vacuum cleaners are an example of this), will the Chinese manufacturer have the same leeway on a product at the price significantly higher? Response in less than a year.
Android Headlines
