Asian Tech Press (Sep 10) -- Chinese electronics giant Xiaomi Corp (1810.HK) plans to launch cars in the first half of 2024, according to media outlet 36Kr, citing sources familiar with the matter.

Several sources with access to a parts giant revealed that Xiaomi has been negotiating with the parts company for cooperation in recent months and disclosed preliminary plans for Xiaomi's electric vehicle business, the report said.

One of the sources said that Xiaomi's EV unit, plans to launch new cars each year for three years after its debuts in 2024, "and the total sales for these three years are to reach 900,000 units."

Xiaomi said it would not comment on this.

The report noted that the Xiaomi's EV team structure has already taken shape. And the previous preparatory group has been renamed the Automotive Department, with more than ten first-level departments, including the Product Department, Smart Cockpit Department and Autonomous Driving Department.

Xiaomi announced on September 1 that Xiaomi's EV unit has officially completed business registration, and the company is named Xiaomi EV Company Limited, with a registered capital of 10 billion yuan and Lei Jun, founder, chairman and CEO of Xiaomi, as its legal representative.

On March 30 this year, Xiaomi announced that it would establish a wholly-owned subsidiary to be responsible for its high-quality smart electric vehicle business, with an expected investment of $10 billion over the next 10 years. In addition, Lei Jun, CEO of Xiaomi, will also be the CEO of the smart electric vehicle business.

At Xiaomi's spring conference, Lei said that Xiaomi will use its existing cash reserves of 10.8 billion yuan ($1.7 billion), its R&D team of more than 10,000 people, its global top three cell phone business, and the world's best smart ecology to build Xiaomi cars.

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