By Qiaoyi Li and Brenda Goh
BEIJING (Reuters) – Sales of Chinese smartphone maker Xiaomi’s (OTC:) first electric car were three to five times higher than expected, CEO Lei Jun said on Thursday, as the company began shipping standard versions of the so-called SU7. to buyers earlier than expected.
Lei, the founder of Xiaomi, made the comments during a two-hour live stream on Douyin, the Chinese equivalent of TikTok, which attracted more than 34 million viewers.
Xiaomi launched its car, which takes styling cues from Porsche, late last month, entering China’s crowded electric vehicle market with an attention-grabbing price tag: less than $30,000 for the base model, which costs $4,000. dollars less than Tesla’s (NASDAQ: )’s base model Model 3 in China.
Xiaomi has deep pockets and has said it expects to lose money on the SU7.
It began some deliveries from a limited batch of 5,000 cars it had already produced – called the “Founder’s Edition”, featuring additional accessories for early buyers on April 3, but Thursday marked the start of deliveries of the standard version of the SU7 in Beijing and Shenzhen.
You said that Xiaomi has brought forward the deliveries of its standard version by 12 days. When asked by online users about future development plans, you said that Xiaomi has no plans to build off-road vehicles and will mainly focus on the SU7.
“As for the software, I require it to be quickly updated at least once a month. If there are problems, they should be improved as soon as possible,” he said.
In addition to the Standard version, Xiaomi had previously said it plans to begin deliveries of the Max models this month and the Pro models by the end of May.
During the event, Lei was asked several times whether Xiaomi was designing a sport utility vehicle, but he did not answer the question.
He was accompanied during the livestream by Wei Jianjun, CEO of Chinese automaker Great Wall Motor, who complimented Xiaomi for being able to produce such a car in three years.
The debut of Xiaomi’s electric vehicle has caused a stir in the Chinese market, with other Chinese EV brands with comparable models announcing price cuts and subsidies following its launch.
While the world’s largest auto market poses a challenge for newcomers due to a cutthroat EV price war and slowing demand, analysts said Xiaomi has deeper pockets than most startups of electric vehicles and its expertise in smartphones gives it an edge in smart dashboards, a feature appreciated by Chinese consumers.
Analysts predict that losses on the SU7 could be substantial. Based on an expected volume of 60,000 units this year, Citi estimates that the SU7 could generate a net loss of 4.1 billion yuan, or an average of 68,000 yuan per car.
($1 = 7.2389 renminbi)