China’s Xiaomi undercuts Tesla with yet another cheaper car

BEIJING — Chinese smartphone company Xiaomi is taking aim straight at rival Tesla with a new electric SUV.

Xiaomi’s luxury YU7 SUV will start at 253,500 yuan ($35,322), CEO Lei Jun said Thursday, pointing out that the vehicle is 10,000 yuan cheaper than Tesla’s Model Y, which starts at 263,500 yuan in China.

Prior to the official price announcement, a Citi report had listed expectations that the YU7 SUV would be priced around 250,000 yuan to 320,000 yuan ($34,800 to $44,590), forecasting monthly sales of about 30,000 units. Once the pace picks up, Citi predicts annual sales of 300,000 to 360,000 units.

Xiaomi’s company’s SU7 sedan launched last year was also priced below Tesla’s Model 3.

Lei on Thursday claimed the YU7 beat Tesla’s Model Y on a range of metrics, but still came short on driver assist. The YU7 comes with driver-assist software, the most advanced version of which is powered by Nvidia’s Thor chip. Pre-sales start at 10 p.m. on Thursday, with deliveries expected within one to five weeks.

Xiaomi had initially said it would launch its YU7 in July. The earlier event takes place amid an intensifying electric car price war.

Xiaomi revealed its YU7 SUV in late May, less than a year after launching its first electric car, and claimed the vehicle would have a driving range of at least 760 kilometers (472 miles) on a single charge.

That’s well above the 719 kilometers advertised for Tesla’s extended-range Model Y. Driving range has been a selling point for consumers worried about frequent battery charging.

While Xiaomi has not promoted its artificial intelligence as much as other consumer brands, Thursday’s launch event showcased several AI car features, such as allowing drivers to change a song using hand motions, or ask a phone app to describe where the car is parked.

The YU7 also supports Apple Car Play and Apple Music, Lei said.

The Chinese smartphone and home appliance company launched several other products on Thursday, including highly-anticipated artificial intelligence-connected glasses.

The AI glasses, which rival Meta’s Ray Bans smart offering, can change the tint of the lenses and scan a QR code to make payments, mimicking China’s mobile smartphone apps. Xiaomi also announced similar features to those of the Meta glasses, such as being able to take photos and videos, as well as use interactive AI to identify a flower or translate text.

Xiaomi’s AI glasses start at 1,999 yuan ($279). A Xiaomi spokesperson said there were currently no plans to sell the glasses overseas. Meta’s version isn’t officially sold in China.