Image: Tesla
Xiaomi CEO Lei Jun has revealed just how closely the company has been studying Tesla as it develops its own electric vehicles. Speaking at the Beijing National Convention Center last week, Lei said Xiaomi bought three Tesla Model Ys earlier this year, tearing them down piece by piece to analyze every component.
“We bought 3 Model Ys at the start of this year, disassembling the parts one by one, and studied every component, one at a time,” Lei said, according to Business Insider.
Behind Lei on stage was a slide comparing the Model Y directly to Xiaomi’s YU7, the company’s first mass-market SUV. “If you don’t choose YU7, you can consider Model Y,” Lei told the audience, adding, “The Model Y is a very, very outstanding car.”
Lei also noted that his team spent significant time thinking about how best to design the interior of the YU7. “The final version of the YU7’s design definitely does not lose to the Model Y,” he said.
Xiaomi’s YU7 launched in late June, breaking all previous car launch records in China by securing more than 200,000 pre-orders in just three minutes. That number grew to over 240,000 within 24 hours. The SUV boasts DC fast charging from 10–80% in just 13 minutes, compared to 18 minutes for the Tesla Model Y.
While Tesla has been losing market share in China to domestic automakers like Xiaomi, Xpeng, and Nio, the Model Y remains an aspirational benchmark for rivals. Analysts like Piper Sandler’s Alex Potter have argued that Tesla still holds a decisive lead in AI and driver-assistance technology, particularly in real-world autonomy, even as local competitors compete aggressively on price. Tesla’s production innovations, such as gigacasting, continue to set the standard for cost-effective manufacturing and repairs — lessons not lost on competitors who study its vehicles closely.
By Lei’s own admission, Xiaomi’s engineers see the Model Y as the bar to clear in building a successful EV, even as the YU7 looks to carve out a market of its own in China’s increasingly competitive landscape.
