Chinese electronics firm Xiaomi will unveil its second electric vehicle, the YU7 SUV, at a product launch event on May 22, as the company seeks to expand its footprint in China’s fast-growing and fiercely competitive electric SUV market.
“Xiaomi YU7 is positioned as a luxury performance SUV,” the company wrote in a post on its official Weibo account. “It comes for the luxury experience, for advanced technology and aims to create an advanced SUV for this era.”
The YU7 follows Xiaomi’s first model, the SU7 electric sedan, which launched in March and was positioned as a direct competitor to Tesla’s Model 3. The new SUV is widely seen as a challenger to Tesla’s Model Y, one of the best-selling SUVs in China.
Lei Jun, Xiaomi’s founder and CEO, described the YU7 as having “irreplaceable and unique appeal” in a Weibo post on Tuesday. “The YU7 has both elegant styling and high performance, but also offers a sense of luxury and spatial comfort, along with advanced smart technologies,” he wrote. “Those who love to drive and want a large space and advanced luxury experience will especially love the YU7.”
According to Lei, the SUV shares the same design language as the SU7 sedan but carries its own distinctive traits. He added, “Xiaomi YU7 is our advanced SUV built with care and attention for the advanced elite of our time.”
The official debut of the YU7 will take place during Xiaomi’s strategic new product launch event, scheduled for 7 p.m. Beijing time on May 22. The company has yet to release specifications or pricing details.
Tesla’s Model Y remains a dominant force in China’s EV market, with 101,873 units delivered between January and April, according to CnEVPost. The U.S. automaker updated the Model Y in China earlier this year, accompanied by a marketing message encouraging buyers to “compare anyway.”
As Xiaomi builds on its growing reputation in the EV sector, analysts will be watching closely to see whether the YU7 can make significant inroads into the crowded premium SUV segment.