One of the world’s largest smartphone makers has confirmed plans to sell its vehicles outside of its home market, paving the way for Australian arrivals.
Electric vehicles from Chinese giant Xiaomi – one of the world’s largest smartphone makers, which recently expanded into cars – have taken a big step towards launching in Australia.
Xiaomi president William Lu told investors earlier this week that Europe will be the brand’s first automotive export market, due in showrooms in 2027.
Europe and Australia are both developed markets with similar safety standards and, increasingly, emissions rules, and it is common for new Chinese brands launching in one of the markets to also expand into the other.
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Right-hand-drive versions of Xiaomi cars would need to be developed for sale locally, but it would also unlock access to the Europe-adjacent UK market.
A Xiaomi representative told Drive at the Shanghai motor show in April that there was no news to share on Australian-market plans. Drive has contacted the company for an updated comment.
Details of which models will be sold in Europe, as well as how much they will cost, are yet to be finalised, chief financial officer Alain Lam told investors.
“We hope that upon entering Europe, we can bring the practices and strategies we have developed in China to the European market,” said Lam.
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“Currently, we are still in the research and preparation phase, and we have not yet finalised specific products or pricing strategies. Therefore, it is challenging to estimate future profitability and gross margins today.
“… We have always mentioned that Xiaomi has tackled difficult tasks first, whether in chip development or the automotive sector.
“Entering the European market means we are starting with one of the toughest markets, and we are fully committed to preparing ourselves to succeed in this endeavour.”
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Xiaomi sells two cars in its home market of China: the SU7 sedan, styled like a Porsche Taycan, and the YU7 SUV, which shares some similarities with a Ferrari Purosangue.
Both have been met with overwhelming demand, the YU7 attracting 200,000 pre-orders in its first three minutes on sale, though only 6024 were delivered in its first month.
Xiaomi’s automotive division reported a loss of 300 million Chinese yuan ($AU65.1 million) for its 81,302 vehicle deliveries in the second quarter of 2025 (April to June), down from 500 million yuan ($AU108 million) across 69,697 vehicles three months earlier.
It means the Chinese brand lost about $AU800 for each vehicle it delivered from April to June, down from $AU1430 across January to March, and $AU2180 across October to December 2024.
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