Chinese smartphone maker, Xiaomi, has announced its venture into the electric car business, initially investing $1.52 billion in the wholly-owned subsidiary, with a total investment goal of $10 billion over the next ten years.
Electric cars have taken off in China thanks to strong policy support from Beijing, including subsidies. Even though some of these measures have been reduced, research firm Canalys forecasts that 1.9 million electric vehicles will be sold in China in 2021, representing year-on-year growth of 51%.
Xiaomi Communications Co., Ltd. is a Chinese multinational electronics company with its headquarters in Beijing. It makes and invests in smartphones, mobile apps, laptops, home appliances, bags, shoes, and consumer electronics. Xiaomi is also the fourth company globally after Apple, Samsung and Huawei to have self-developed mobile system-on-chip (SoC) capabilities.
At the start of the second quarter of 2018, Xiaomi was the world’s fourth-largest smartphone manufacturer, leading in both the largest market, China, and the second-largest market, India. It is the world’s 4th most valuable technology startup after receiving $1.1 billion funding from investors, making its valuation more than $46 billion.
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