Lei Jun talks about the origin of making cars: At that time, Xiaomi phones were being sanctioned by the United States, the directors supported making cars, but required him to personally lead the team

On the evening of July 19th, during the 2024 annual speech by Lei Jun, Chairman of Xiaomi, he revealed the decision-making process for entering the car manufacturing industry. In January 2021, when Xiaomi smartphones were sanctioned by the United States, a director at the board meeting asked what Xiaomi would do if they couldn't make smartphones anymore. Should they seriously consider entering the car manufacturing industry? Almost all executives supported the idea, but Lei Jun himself thought the risks were too high. After conducting over 70 days of research in more than 10 cities, holding 85 research sessions, interviewing over 200 people, and having 4 executive meetings, both Li Bin and He Xiaopeng advised Lei Jun to enter the car manufacturing industry. Lei Jun pondered on what benefits this decision would bring to them and whether having another competitor would be a concern. He questioned if they were genuinely looking out for him and for Xiaomi. At that time, it was estimated internally at Xiaomi that entering the car manufacturing industry would require at least 10 billion US dollars. While the board supported the decision, they required Lei Jun to personally lead the team