Lei Jun, CEO of Chinese smartphone giant Xiaomi, on Tuesday revealed that the company is expected to mass produce its own electric cars in the first half of 2024. The comments were made at an investor event and were later confirmed by the company.

Right after the news, Xiaomi’s shares in Hong Kong jumped over 5% (via: CNBC).

The company’s previous major announcement regarding its new venture was made back in March where it had said that it plans to invest $10 billion into the business over the next 10 years. These plans were solidified last month when Xiaomi officially registered its electric vehicle business Xiaomi EV Inc. The novel company now has 300 employees and Lei Jun himself leads the group.

The Chinese market’s potential for electric vehicles is boundless. With incentives such as almost every fifth new car registered last month being rechargeable in the country, new players have been making their way into the market, which has now gotten more crowded than ever. Recently, even Chinese search giant Baidu launched an electric car company of its own in January, hiring a CEO for the business a month later.

When Xiaomi launches its own electric cars in 2024, it will be facing competition from companies like BYD, Nio, and Xpeng as well as from the American Tesla.

China’s electric vehicle market has had favorable government support over the last few years which helped the industry grow. While some of that support has been reduced, the market is still growing.

Over the last few years, China’s electric car sector has benefited from favorable government assistance, which has aided the industry’s growth. That backing may have dwindled but the market continues to grow. According to market research firm Canalys, 1.9 million electric vehicles will be sold in China in 2021, up 51% year on year.

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