New rumors seem to confirm that the Chinese phone manufacturer Xiaomi will launch an electric car. Three people who have direct access to the Chinese giant’s plans have agreed that it has a new partner to accelerate the development of an electric model.
Xiaomi Corp. plans to produce electric cars in a factory owned by Chinese carmaker Great Wall Motor, Reuters reported, citing three people who have direct access to information. Xiaomi is thus joining other giants in the IT industry that want to enter the electric mobility market.
Xiaomi did not comment on this information, while Great Wall Motor said it had not discussed such a partnership with Xiaomi. However, two of the people quoted by Reuter, who did not want to be identified, confirmed the talks between the two companies. According to them, Xiaomi will produce electric cars under its own brand, but in a factory owned in China by Great Wall Motor.
The future model will be a mass one, in line with Xiaomi’s position on the mobile phone market. According to Reuters sources, Great Wall Motor will provide technological advice to accelerate the project. The Chinese carmaker has never offered its production facilities to other companies. Both companies will announce the partnership next week.
Xiaomi will launch an electric car. What we know right now
More and more IT and automotive companies have announced recent partnerships for the development of smart electric cars. Among them, Baidu and Geely in China, or Apple and Hyundai-Kia, a partnership that it seems to have ended as unexpectedly as it had begun.
Xiaomi’s experience in hardware production, but also in mobile communications and IoT will allow the construction of an extremely competent intelligent machine. But Xiaomi needs a partner for the automotive engineering part, which requires a high level of specialization. This is not the first time that rumors have surfaced about Xiaomi’s involvement in building a car. The Chinese giant holds an impressive number of patents in the field of electric cars, their value being exceeded only by those owned by Tesla.
According to Reuters sources, the future Xiaomi car would enter the market in 2023, offering connectivity with other devices in the Xiaomi universe. The partnership with Xiaomi can facilitate the production part, but let’s not forget that the car industry is a tough field. Dyson, the famous British home appliance manufacturer, tried to develop an electric car and had to give up the prototype phase after the costs got out of hand. Even Apple had abandoned its project before announcing its interest in an electric car again.
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