Xiaomi’s Latest Developments: Launch of Xiaomi Car and Financial Performance Update
On the morning of March 25th, Xiaomi officially announced on their Weibo account that Xiaomi Cars would be officially launched at 7 p.m. on March 28th (this Thursday).
Lei Jun Speaks Out
Simultaneously, Xiaomi’s founder, chairman, and CEO Lei Jun took to his personal Weibo account, stating:
“Three years ago, during the Xiaomi car unveiling event, I said that this would be my final entrepreneurial endeavor in life. I am willing to stake my entire reputation in the battle for Xiaomi Cars.
Over the past three years, every day has been filled with various difficulties and challenges. But deep inside, there has always been a voice urging me to keep moving forward!
This marks the first step for Xiaomi Cars and the beginning of my final battle in life.”
Xiaomi’s 2023 Performance
On March 19th, Xiaomi Group released its 2023 financial report. The company achieved a revenue of 271 billion RMB for the full year of 2023, a decrease of 3.2% compared to the previous year, with an adjusted net profit of 19.3 billion RMB, marking a 126.3% increase year-on-year. In the fourth quarter of 2023, Xiaomi Group’s total revenue was 73.2 billion RMB, a 10.9% increase year-on-year, with an adjusted net profit of 4.9 billion RMB, an increase of 236.1% year-on-year, including 2.4 billion RMB in expenses for innovative businesses such as smart electric cars.
In August 2023, Xiaomi Group set a “New Ten-Year Goal”: to heavily invest in foundational core technologies and strive to become a global leader in hardcore technology for the new generation.
To achieve this, Xiaomi Group has been placing increasing importance on technological research and development. According to the financial report, Xiaomi Group’s R&D expenditure in 2023 reached 19.1 billion RMB, a 19.2% increase year-on-year. As of December 31, 2023, Xiaomi Group had 17,800 R&D personnel, accounting for 53% of the total workforce. In terms of patents, Xiaomi Group has obtained over 37,000 patents worldwide.
Xiaomi Group stated that the new operating system Xiaomei Penglai OS launched in 2023, the Xiaomi Dragon Axis for Xiaomi MIX Fold 3, the Xiaomi Longjing Glass for Xiaomi 14 Pro and Xiaomi 14 Ultra, and the five key technologies of Xiaomi Cars all serve as evidence of Xiaomi’s technological strength. In February 2024, the new Xiaomi smartphone smart factory was officially put into operation, with an annual production capacity of tens of millions of smartphones.
Simultaneously with the financial report, Xiaomi Cars made new progress.
On March 19th, Lei Jun posted on Weibo: “Today is a special day as Xiaomi Car’s super factory is officially unveiled. The board of directors chose to convene at the Xiaomi Car factory, inspecting the site and test-driving the Xiaomi SU7.”
During the same conference call on that day, Xiaomi Group’s President Lu Weibing stated: “The Xiaomi SU7 is a C-class high-performance ecological technology sedan with outstanding performance, configuration, and experience. It may be slightly expensive, but I believe after watching the launch on March 28th, everyone will recognize the value for money it offers.”
In December 2023, Xiaomi held a Xiaomi Car technology unveiling event, introducing the five key self-developed technologies of Xiaomi Cars: electric drive, battery, die-casting, smart cockpit, and intelligent driving. At the same time, the Xiaomi SU7 series was officially unveiled to the public.
The Xiaomi SU7 series is positioned as a “C-class high-performance, ecological technology sedan.” The Xiaomi SU7 Max version features dual-motor all-wheel drive, with a maximum horsepower of up to 673PS, 0-100 km/h acceleration in 2.78 seconds, and a CLTC range of up to 800 km. Currently, the price of the Xiaomi SU7 series remains undisclosed.
Xiaomi Group has high hopes for the Xiaomi SU7 series. Lu Weibing stated that Xiaomi’s interim goal for Xiaomi Cars is to rank in the top three in sales of “pure electric luxury sedans.” Additionally, he emphasized that compared to sales figures, Xiaomi is more concerned about user experience and reputation.