Xiaomi made a big splash with its debut EV, the SU7, just a month ago. Now, the Chinese tech giant is gearing up for its next move: a direct challenge to Tesla’s Model Y with its upcoming SUV. This move signals Xiaomi’s intent to compete head-on with Tesla and other local rivals like BYD, Nio, and Xpeng in the electric vehicle market.
According to a recent Bloomberg report, Xiaomi’s SUV project has been in the works since 2021, with the company even benchmarking it against Tesla’s Model Y during development. While the SU7 sedan was the first vehicle to hit the market, Xiaomi has had its sights set on an SUV for a while.
The company is now set to ramp up production, with plans to start mass production of the SUV in late 2025, following the completion of the second phase of construction at its Beijing facility. While specific details such as pricing and projected demand remain unknown, Xiaomi aims to leverage its production capacity, which is currently around 10,000 units per month but is slated to expand to accommodate up to 300,000 vehicles per year.
Xiaomi’s SU7 sedan has already garnered significant attention from consumers, with an impressive 50,000 orders received in just the first 27 minutes of sales. Deliveries of the SU7 began in April, with 7,058 units delivered by the end of the month. The demand for Xiaomi’s EV is evident, with a backlog of 88,063 orders accumulated by May 1st.
The initial success of the SU7 is promising, with all production slots for 2024 already filled and an expected output of around 100,000 vehicles by the end of the year. This rapid scale-up is noteworthy, as it surpasses the speed at which Tesla reached the milestone of 100,000 units of the Model 3, demonstrating Xiaomi’s potential to make a significant impact in the EV market.
