Xiaomi drives into EV manufacturing with a $10 billion investment

Xiaomi is way more than just a smartphone manufacturer, but you probably already knew that. The company has now diversified its interests into a brand new category — electric cars — with plans to invest $10 billion in EV manufacturing over the next decade.

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The company announced its plans today in an exchange filing. It will set up a wholly-owned subsidiary to operate in the smart electric vehicles business with an initial investment of 10 billion yuan (~$1.5 billion). CEO Lei Jun will head the latest venture.

“Xiaomi hopes to offer quality smart electric vehicles to let everyone in the world enjoy smart living anytime, anywhere,” the company wrote in its filing, suggesting that its EVs won’t just be restricted to China.

There’s no official word on when exactly we can expect a Xiaomi-branded electric car to hit the road, but the Chinese firm has promised to reveal more information at part two of its mega launch event later today. However, it’s too early to predict anything.

With this new business vertical, Xiaomi will compete against other smartphone giants looking to break into the electric car scene. HUAWEI is also reportedly in talks with vehicle manufacturers to launch electric vehicles under its own brand. Apple too is rumored to jump on the bandwagon.

Nevertheless, it’ll be interesting to how Xiaomi plans to achieve automotive success. We’ll update this article when we know more about the company’s ambitions.