China’s Xiaomi Corp introduced plans on Tuesday to invest $10 billion in a new good electric automobile (EV) enterprise, and individually to launch a self-developed computing chip, because the group expanded out of its core smartphone enterprise.
At a dwell streamed occasion held on Tuesday, Xiaomi CEO Lei Jun, who will even head the good EV unit, stated the division would be the “last major entrepreneurial project” in his life.
The agency will initially invest 10 billion yuan ($1.52 billion) in the unit, with a complete funding aim of $10 billion over the following ten years, it stated in a submitting printed earlier on the Hong Kong inventory trade.
The firm’s transfer into automobiles follows related steps by different tech giants, in China and abroad. In January, Chinese search big Baidu Inc stated it could develop an EV unit by way of a partnership with home carmaker Geely Automobile Holdings Ltd.
Last month Reuters reported that Chinese smartphone big Huawei Technologies Co Ltd was in talks with state-owned automaker Changan Automobile and others to manufacture EVs, whereas Apple Inc can also be planning an entry into the EV market, in accordance to experiences.
Reuters reported final week that Xiaomi was in talks to companion with Chinese automaker Great Wall Motor Co for assist in manufacturing EVs.
Xiaomi declined to touch upon the report, whereas Great Wall stated in an trade submitting that it had not mentioned such a partnership with Xiaomi. Lei made no point out of partnerships in his public remarks.
During the press occasion, Xiaomi additionally introduced the discharge of a self-developed computing chip. Known because the Surge C1, the chip is a picture sign processor (ISP), used to improve a cellphone`s means to course of high-resolution photographs and video.
Xiaomi stated that the corporate took two years and spent 140 million yuan in analysis and improvement prices to develop the chip, which shall be positioned in the corporate’s newly introduced Mi Mix folding cellphone.
The firm has lengthy been trying to crack the semiconductor sector, although to date it has had restricted success in contrast to rival Chinese Android maker Huawei.
