Are Tesla and Xiaomi about to create a joint partnership?
According to reports, smartphone manufacturer Xiaomi is reportedly interested in making an electric car, despite actively denying involvement in cars over the past six months.
CEO Lei Jun has declared Xiaomi's active interest in electric cars behind the scenes according to several outlets and the leader loves Tesla Motors, the U.S. based electric car manufacturer.
If reports are to be believed, Xiaomi VP Li Wanqiang is visiting Silicon Valley and may be trying to hash out a deal with the luxury electric automaker. Tesla already has an active presence in China, but Xiaomi may be looking for a partnership of some kind.
A partnership with Xiaomi could be huge for Tesla in China. Xiaomi has a strong presence with the young audience and could potentially sell millions of electric cars.
Tesla has not created a hardware partnership yet, but many critics believe Xiaomi could be a great partner. It offers software and hardware solutions and has various factories in the country, which could become potential homes for Tesla car manufacturing.
The new electric car may be a new version of the Tesla Model S or a different model altogether. Tesla is currently working on two new models for 2015 and 2016 release.
It is unclear exactly what Xiaomi plans to do, whether they want to go alone in the car-manufacturing world or work with Tesla Motors in some fashion. What is clear is Xiaomi's interest in electric cars, even if the company denies it to the public.
The company's leader Lei Jun has interests in many markets and electric cars are definitely one of them. Xiaomi is also working on a smart home platform, which could integrate with the electric car in some way.
