Dialogue with Lei Jun: Building Cars is a Ten-Year Effort, Not a One-Month Race

Lei Jun stresses patience as Xiaomi doubles down on EVs

Lei Jun (雷军), founder and CEO of Xiaomi (小米), has told staff and partners that building electric cars will be a long-term undertaking — a “ten-year effort, not a one-month race,” it has been reported. The comment is meant to temper expectations as the smartphone giant moves deeper into an industry dominated by specialist automakers and well-funded startups. Xiaomi pledged up to $10 billion over a decade when it formally entered the EV market, signalling serious intent but also acknowledging a marathon, not a sprint.

Lei’s message lands amid a noisy Chinese new-energy vehicle (NEV) market. Xiaomi joins incumbents such as BYD (比亚迪) and new challengers including Nio (蔚来), Xpeng (小鹏) and Li Auto (理想). Competition is fierce on price, software and supply chain integration; success requires sustained investment, manufacturing scale and software expertise. Reportedly, Xiaomi’s EV unit has been taking a cautious approach to production timelines and technology choices to avoid the pitfalls that have bedevilled some internet firms that rushed into carmaking.

Geopolitics, semiconductors and the road ahead

There is a wider geopolitical angle. Export controls and trade policy — particularly US limits on advanced chips and tooling — could complicate access to high-end semiconductors and testing equipment that power autonomous features. That matters to a consumer-electronics company used to rapid product cycles. If Xiaomi is to compete on smart cockpit software and autonomous driving, it will need resilient supply chains and likely deeper partnerships with domestic and overseas suppliers.

For investors and consumers, Lei’s posture is a signal to slow the tempo. Short-term headlines about launch dates and pre-order figures will matter less than whether Xiaomi can build manufacturing partnerships, secure chip supplies, and sustain investment through the inevitable setbacks. Will patience pay off? Xiaomi’s entry into cars raises the obvious question: can an electronics champion translate its economy of scale and software know-how into a durable automaking business? Only time — and a decade of execution, Lei suggests — will tell.