Xiaomi plans to sell EVs globally after launching $73,000 SU7 Ultra

BARCELONA — Xiaomi plans to begin selling its electric vehicles outside of China “within the next few years,” company President William Lu said on Sunday.

Lu made the announcement at Xiaomi’s product launch at the Mobile World Congress in Barcelona. While there were no concrete timelines, his comments underscore the Chinese technology giant’s ambitions in the global EV market to take on players like Tesla.

“I cannot share too many details but I am so excited to tell our global users that Xiaomi will be releasing EVs for the sale in global markets within the next few years,” Lu said.

This week, Xiaomi launched its first premium EV in China called the SU7 Ultra, which starts at 529,000 Chinese yuan ($72,627). Lu said the car racked up 15,000 orders in 24 hours and will be on display at the company’s booth at MWC.

It’s only Xiaomi’s second electric car after its announcing its foray into the EV segment in 2021. The company’s first vehicle, called the SU7, was launched last year in March. The company, which is best-known as a smartphone player, only sells its EVs in China but it is the world’s third-largest smartphone vendor.

Xiaomi’s SU7 has been successful, with the company delivering more than 100,000 units last year.

Xiaomi’s EV boom, along with a recovery in smartphone sales, has helped the company’s stock, which is listed in Hong Kong, surge almost 300% over the last 12 months.

The Beijing-headquartered company is looking to ride that wave with a new high-end phone called the Xiaomi 15 Ultra launched on Sunday, which it hopes will challenge Samsung on a global stage.