At the end of 2023 in Beijing, Xiaomi EV “pre-launched” the new company’s first product, the highly anticipated SU7, positioned as a “full-size high-performance eco-technology sedan.” Earlier this week the company added to the story with a bit more detail on design and market launch.

The events revealed the car’s design, performance, range, and safety systems—and five core technologies: e-motor, battery, body structure diecasting, Pilot autonomous driving, and smart cabin tech. With the development of foundational core technologies, the company boldly says it aims to redefine automotive-industry technology.

Xiaomi’s entry into the automotive industry marks a significant leap from the smartphone industry and a crucial step toward closing the loop of the broader group’s Human x Car x Home smart ecosystem, said Lei Jun, Founder, Chairman, and CEO of Xiaomi Group. “Xiaomi has decided to invest tenfold, starting from the development of fundamental core technologies, committing to constructing an outstanding vehicle. Through 15 to 20 years of effort, Xiaomi aims to become one of the top five global automakers.”

 

“Technology x Ecosystem” for smart mobile spaces 

Lei Jun says Xiaomi’s automotive goal is “to craft a dream car” that is aesthetically pleasing, enjoyable to drive, comfortable, smart, and safe. The SU7 is an impressive combination of cutting-edge technology and advanced performance and driving experiences.

The company says that much of the technology is self-developed including the HyperEngine e-motor family, CTB integrated battery technology, and a series of innovations such as body structure manufacturing using the Xiaomi Die-Casting T9100 die-casting cluster. The Xiaomi Smart Chassis control algorithm gives the car two major capabilities—smart multi-dimensional Sensing and global synchronized control—allowing for millisecond-level adaptive dynamic chassis control across scenarios and providing a stable handling experience while delivering an almost “bump-free” driving experience.

More importantly, according to Xiaomi, is that the SU7 incorporates three major ecosystems by integrating applications, hardware, and third-party CarIoT ecosystems for an “unprecedented smart mobile space experience.” The CarIoT ecosystem is fully open to third parties, featuring standardized interfaces, extensive communication protocol standards, and lightweight retrofit solutions for existing devices.

China data insight and analytics company MoonFox believes the major selling point of Xiaomi cars is the integration of “people, automobile, and family.” For example, cooperation concepts put forward at the press conference such as “voice preparation of automobile at home” and “automatic activation of home scenes upon the automobile’s arrival in the community” can make the new EV company attractive to its target audience.

Lei Jun added that by integrating industrial manufacturing, smart software, and AI, Xiaomi EV will completely redefine the automotive industry, marking a significant leap in its technological landscape. The company has invested over ¥10 billion (just under $1.4 billion) in the initial research and development phase, with the R&D team comprising over 3400 engineers and over a thousand technical experts in critical domains both in China and abroad. In the five core technologies, numerous self-developed technologies are said to be first-of-a-kind globally or domestically, showcasing the Xiaomi group’s 13 years of technological development expertise.

The high-tech SU7 is now available for ordering in mainland China at shockingly low starting prices of ¥215,900 (about $29,800) for the standard model, ¥245,900 (about $34,000) for the Pro, and ¥299,900 (about $41,400) for the Max. With over 88,898 reservations within the first day of its release, the SU7 is set to start deliveries in April and May for the Pro and Max versions, respectively.

 

Leading aero and diecast structure

Xiaomi calls its SU7 a C-class luxury technology sedan with golden-ratio proportions for wheel-to-axle, wheel height, and height-to-width aspect ratios. Design highlights are a low front, smooth and full body curves, tensile wheel design, and a rear compact ducktail spoiler with a halo taillight design—achieving a class-leading drag coefficient of 0.195.

On the safety front, the car features a 90.1% high-strength-steel/aluminum alloy armored cage for 51,000 N·m (37,600 lb·ft)/degree torsional stiffness. Key structural elements include a front lower high-strength beam and upper triangulated frame integrated aluminum diecasting, ultra-strong side beams with 820-kN (184,000-lb) lateral impact resistance, and a rear floor large one-piece diecasting.

Regarding diecasting, Xiaomi says it is pursuing a full-stack self-researched path. From materials and equipment clusters to finished castings, the company has completed nearly all aspects of the large die-casting industrial chain.

Its self-developed die-casting T9100 “cluster” machine and proprietary Xiaomi Titans Metal die-casting alloy material make it the only domestic automaker simultaneously self-researching both large die-casting and materials. The cluster covers an area of 840 m² (9040 ft²), with a total weight of 1050 t and locking force reaching 9100 t. Xiaomi has developed a quality system that can complete inspections of individual parts within 2 s, offering an efficiency ten times higher than manual inspection.

The application of this cluster enables a rear underbody integrating 72 components into one, reducing welded joints by 840, decreasing overall car weight by 17%, and reducing production time by 45%. Lifespan durability is more than 2 million km (1.2 million mi) and it reduces vehicle noise levels by 2 dB.

For Titans Metal, the company’s Multi-Material Performance Simulation System was used to select the optimal alloy formula from 10.16 million possibilities, ensuring an ideal combination of strength, resilience, and stability for the high-strength, high-resilience, heat-treated die-casting material.

Xiaomi EV says the SU7 factory in the Yizhuang Development Zone in Beijing sets standards for sustainability. Its solar roof generates 16.4 million kW·h of clean energy annually and has 99% efficiency in exhaust gas treatment and “zero” heavy metal into waste-water emissions.

 

HyperEngine performance

Xiaomi EV says the SU7 features unmatched performance, citing 0 to 100 and 200 km/h (62 and 124 mph) acceleration in 2.78 and 10.67 s, 80-120 and 120-160 km/h (50-75 and 75-100 mph) interval acceleration in 1.61 and 2.5 s, and a top speed of 265 km/h (165 mph).

The company is independently developing and manufacturing e-motors. Since the company says they rival the performance of traditional large V6 and V8 powertrains from the ICE (internal combustion engine) era, the motor families get ICE-inspired names; the HyperEngine comes in V6/V6s, V8s, and a future variant.

First up, and in production now, are the HyperEngine V6/V6s e-motors that boast a rotational speed of 21,000 rpm, said by Xiaomi to surpass the most powerful mass-produced electric motor globally. Outputs for the V6/V6s are 220/275 kW and 400/500 N·m (295/369 lb·ft).

The HyperEngine V8s e-motor, in production now but not on the road until 2025, has outputs of 425 kW and 635 N·m (468 lb·ft). To enable its industry-exceeding speed of 27,200 rpm, it employs the industry’s first ultra-high-strength silicon steel boasting a 960-MPa (139-ksi) tensile strength that is said to surpass mainstream industry offerings by more than two times.

For better thermal control, the V8s e-motor adopts bidirectional full oil cooling and an S-shaped oil circuit. The stator’s dual-cycle oil circuit increases the heat dissipation area by 100% and achieves a cooling effect of up to 20°C (36°F). Its silicon steel laminations feature a “step-like” staggered design, further increasing the effective heat dissipation area by 7%. The rotor’s patented S-shaped oil circuit increases the heat dissipation area by 50% and achieves a cooling effect of up to 30°C (54°F).

A future HyperEngine in the pre-research phase features a carbon-sleeved rotor for 35,000 rpm capability.

The Xiaomi Smart Chassis underpinning the car features Bosch ESP10.0 stability control and DPB brake controller. The aluminum double-wishbone front and five-link rear independent suspensions feature a closed-loop air suspension with four height adjustments and CDC variable damping. Other highlights are a 50:50 front-rear weight distribution and a low 443-mm (17.4-in) center of gravity.

 

CTB integrated battery technology

The car’s electric range is 700-810 km (435-503 mi) on the CLTC (China Light-Duty Vehicle Test Cycle) from the 101-kW·h CATL Kirin battery. Charging speed is another highlight, with the SU7 Max having an 871-V SiC platform adding 220 and 510 km (136 and 317 mi) of range after 5 and 15 min of charging, respectively. The standard model with a 486-V SiC platform offers a 138 and 350 km (85 and 217 mi) range boost in those same times.

Xiaomi has also self-developed CTB (cell-to-body) integrated battery technology with innovative inverted cells, multifunctional elastic interlayer, and minimalistic wiring technologies.

It features a battery integration efficiency of 77.8%, said to be the highest for CTB examples worldwide, a 24.4% overall performance improvement, and a height reduction of 17 mm (0.7 in). Battery and floor thickness is 120 mm (4.7 in), the wiring harness is reduced by 91%, and space taken up by the battery pack is reduced by 3%. Maximum battery capacity is up to 150 kW·h and theoretical CLTC recharge range exceeds 1200 km (745 mi).

Key safety details include a 14-layer robust physical protection system with three layers of top support, three layers of side protection, and eight layers of bottom protection. A downward-facing pressure relief valve swiftly releases energy in extreme situations, maximizing passenger cabin safety.

For thermal control, a dual-side water cooling solution with heat-dissipation plates on both long sides of the battery cells achieves a cooling area of 7.8 m² (84 ft²)—a claimed four times the industry average. The sides of the battery cells feature 165 pieces of aerogel insulation material capable of resisting temperatures up to 1000°C (1830°F).

The CTB’s self-developed BMS (battery management system) meets ISO ASIL-D, the highest functional safety level. It includes three independent thermal runaway monitors and alarms, with an “around-the-clock” early warning system.

Xiaomi says that its batteries boast industry-leading reliability and undergo the most stringent safety tests including 1050+ verifications and 96 times the international standard of durability testing duration. All SU7 models are equipped with silicon carbide controls, chargers, and compressors with a peak efficiency of 99.6%.

 

Smart “human-centric” cabin

The Xiaomi EV Smart Cabin uses a “human-centric” interaction architecture that features a 16.1-in 3K central console, a 56-in HUD head-up display, a 7.1-in rotating “dashboard” displays with two front seat-back extension mounts supporting plug-and-play functionality for a range of devices.

It is equipped with the Qualcomm Snapdragon 8295 in-car chip with AI computing power of up to 30 TOPS, enabling an interactive experience linking the five screens. The interactive experience is similar to tablets, allowing users to quickly adapt to the interfaces.

Xiaomi’s Human x Car x Home ecosystem provides interconnection and coordination capabilities, while its HyperOS ensures a seamless and smooth experience. The vehicle OS launches in a rapid 1.49 s after the door is unlocked. It integrates mainstream applications, including the whole Xiaomi tablet application ecosystem, with gradual adaptation to over 5000 applications. Smartphone applications can be pinned to the car console, transforming them into in-car applications.

The SU7’s robust CarIoT ecosystem supports the integration of over 1000 Xiaomi smart home devices, enabling automatic discovery, password-free access, and the ability to set up automation scenarios. To meet the needs of users, the EV fully supports Apple CarPlay, the mounting of iPads and iPad accessories, and applications on the rear extension mount.

The tri-spoke steering wheel features two physical buttons below the hub, one turning on smart driving and the other enabling a performance Boost mode.

 

Pilot autonomous driving

The SU7 comes with two self-developed Xiaomi Pilot ADAS options: Pro and Max. They are based on the same 11-camera combination and Nvidia Drive Orin compute platform with full-stack algorithms. That base includes two 8-MP front, four 3-MP side, four 3-MP panoramic, and one 3-MP rear cameras; 12 “ultrasonic radars;” and one millimeter-wave front radar. The Pro features one 84-TOPS Orin, and the Max gets two Orins for 508 TOPS, two millimeter-wave rear radars, and one lidar.

The lidar is a Hesai high-performance AT128 long-range unit in a “sleek watchtower style” configuration on the roof. It features 128 independent VCSEL (vertical-cavity surface-emitting laser) lasers for leading imaging capabilities, long-range, and rich 3D scanning.

Xiaomi says it is showcasing its unique advantage as a global technology leader in driving the integration of the automotive and consumer electronics industries with intelligent ecosystems. In terms of autonomous driving, the company believes it has pioneered three key technologies: adaptive BEV technology, road-mapping foundational model, and super-res occupancy network technology.

Adaptive BEV technology involves different perception algorithms based on the scenario. The perception grid has a granularity of 5 to 20 cm (2 to 7 in), with a recognition range extending from 5 cm to 250 m (2 in to 820 ft). The technology is said to ensure wider visibility in urban scenarios, more precision in parking scenarios, and extended vision in high-speed scenarios.

The road-mapping foundational model is said to revolutionize methods of perceiving road conditions. It recognizes conditions in real-time, intelligently switches to a more reasonable driving trajectory, and navigates smoothly in complex intersections without relying on high-definition maps. It relies on learning from complex intersection scenarios and experience of driver habits.

The super-res occupancy network technology enables recognition for “irregular obstacles” with innovative vector algorithms that simulate visible objects as continuous curved surfaces rather than blocks, improving accuracy. A one-click noise reduction feature is said to eliminate the impact of rain and snow on recognition, significantly reducing the probability of misidentification.

Xiaomi also developed what it says is the world’s first production-ready “end-to-end sensing and decision-making AI model” for automated parking. This model allows for real-time observation and dynamic adjustment when parking in challenging scenarios such as parking facilities that include elevators.