Chinese technology giant Xiaomi is very serious about entering the automotive market and has officially announced the formation of Xiaomi EV Company Limited.
According to GizmoChina, an announcement from Xiaomi reveals that founder, chairman, and chief executive of the company, Lei Jun, is the legal representative and that the EV brand has a registered capital of 10 billion RMB ($1.5 billion).
In a statement, Xiaomi announced that it has spent the last five months conducting user research and industry chain inspections. It has conducted more than 2,000 interview surveys and made visits to over 10 industry peers and partners. In addition, the company recently had a recruitment drive on Weibo and in less than a month, had received over 20,000 resumes. It has currently formed a team with 300 employees.
Read Also: Smartphone Giant Xiaomi Wants To Build Electric Cars With The Help Of Great Wall
Xiaomi purchased autonomous driving technology company Deepmotion Tech in late August. However, the company has yet to present a roadmap detailing what its venture into the electric vehicle space will entail, including if it plans to produce EVs on its own or if it could partner with an existing automaker or contract manufacturer.
Jun first announced Xiaomi’s intention to enter the EV space earlier in the year, announcing the company is willing to spend $10 billion on the venture in the coming 10 years. Rival Huawei is also venturing into the EV space.
In March, rumors surfaced online suggesting that Xiaomi was in talks with Great Wall to use one of its factories to build electric vehicles under its own brand. While some inside sources suggested a deal between the pair would be announced, nothing has eventuated at this stage.
