Xiaomi said to have signed agreement with BAIC

Shanghai  31st July 2017 Gasgoo-A source said, Xiaomi Inc., the world's 5th largest smartphone maker in 2015, has signed an agreement of strategic partnership with Beijing Automotive Industry Corp (BAIC). It is said that their cooperation is about the intelligent driving.

Another people close to the matter revealed that on that day, BAIC president Xu Heyi and other BAIC executives, accompanied by Xiaomi’s founder and chariman Lei Jun, visited one of Xiaomi’s customer service center. During the visit, Lei Jun introduced and demonstrated Xiaomi’s whole series of products, especially vehicle-related products, such as on-board air cleaners, car chargers and intelligent car DVRs. All of the above products may suggest Xiaomi’s ambition in auto industry.

With more and more technology entering into auto market, Xiaomi has been repeatedly reported to have interest in auto market. In 2014, so-called Xiaomi vehicle spy photos were revealed on the Internet, which was denied by Lei Jun. In 2015, Xiaomi Technology Co.,Ltd applied an invention patent which was named Intelligent Vehicle Driving Control Means and Appliance. All these news, the patent information from the State Intellectual Property Office in particular, sparked the speculation of its entering into auto market. Even though Lei Jun once said that Xiaomi doesn’t plan to make electric vehicles, it has actually conducted some study on intelligent vehicles.