A new electric SUV YU7 is displayed at a Xiaomi store in Beijing, China May 29, 2025. Xiaomi entered the EV market in December 2023 with the release of its sedan, the SU7. — Reuters
Xiaomi may not be a household name in the US, but in China its products are everywhere. Already one of the world’s top mobile phone manufacturers, the technology company also makes everything from toothbrushes to watches – even mattresses.
Now it’s betting big on electric vehicles, having already succeeded where even Apple failed.
The Chinese company’s new push has proven quite lucrative, helping it gain some US$120bil in market value over the past year.
Xiaomi entered the EV market in December 2023 with the release of its sedan, the SU7. In June 2025, the company unveiled a sports utility vehicle, the YU7, which saw almost 300,000 orders in its first hour of availability. Priced at 253,500 yuan (US$35,360), the YU7 is intended to compete with Tesla’s Model Y in China.
But to maintain its stellar growth, Xiaomi arguably needs to go global. The company says it plans to take its EVs to the European market by 2027-further challenging Tesla as well as Chinese EV giant BYD.
But the world’s biggest economy remains out of reach: As a result of President Donald Trump’s global trade war, Chinese EVs face a 100% tariff in the US, effectively boxing out Xiaomi and other Chinese EV makers. – Bloomberg
