By Sarah WuBEIJING (Reuters) – He was known as China’s reply to Steve Jobs for taking Xiaomi from scrappy startup to an electronics big recognized for its smartphones.With the launch of a much-hyped and against-the-odds electrical automobile, Lei Jun, Xiaomi’s co-founder and CEO, is taking up Elon Musk with a technique that takes a web page from Tesla’s playbook.Lei, 54, took the stage in Beijing on Thursday to unveil Xiaomi’s SU7 automobile, a venture three years within the making that has attracted plenty of consideration however which, Lei has warned buyers, will lose cash.Throughout Thursday’s two-hour occasion – a livestream thousands and thousands of Chinese language tuned in to look at – Lei made a jibe at Apple for dropping its automobile venture and declared Xiaomi’s EV superior to Tesla’s Mannequin 3.Followers dubbed the Xiaomi CEO “Thor” on social media, a play on his surname which suggests thunder in Chinese language. Some commented that his outfit – a gray blazer over a black t-shirt – seemed like one thing Musk would put on.HANGZHOU, CHINA – MARCH 28: Xiaomi’s new vitality automobile SU7 is displayed at a Xiaomi retailer on March 28, 2024 in Hangzhou, Zhejiang Province of China. The Xiaomi SU7 was formally launched on the evening of March 28. (Picture by VCG/VCG through Getty Photographs) (VCG through Getty Photographs)Already a family identify in China, Lei’s advertising technique for his EV borrows straight from Musk, mentioned Yale Zhang, managing director at Automotive Foresight.”One individual equals a complete advertising workforce,” Zhang mentioned. “With each phrase he says, the eye he attracts on-line is of a unique magnitude.”Born in central China, Lei graduated from Wuhan College with a level in pc science earlier than working his approach as much as change into chief government of software program agency Kingsoft.In 2010, he co-founded Xiaomi. By 2014, the tech startup had a valuation of $46 billion.The Beiijng-based firm has grown with the recognition of its smartphones and residential home equipment, beloved in Chinese language households for his or her affordability and smooth styling.Final yr, Xiaomi launched costlier smartphones to compete with Apple’s iPhone, however Lei’s choice to promote a sporty EV that attracts styling cues from Porsche will check the Chinese language firm’s capacity to shift to a brand new, premium market.Story continuesIn 2021, Lei introduced Xiaomi would construct its personal EV, an enterprise he mentioned then can be “the final main entrepreneurship venture” of his life.”Within the three years of creating this automobile, my largest realization is that making vehicles is extraordinarily tough,” Lei mentioned on Thursday. “Even a large like Apple gave up on it.”FILE PHOTO: CEO Lei Jun unveils Xiaomi’s first electrical automobile, the SU7, in Beijing, ChinaBEIJING BACKINGThe SU7 – brief for Pace Extremely 7 – enters a crowded China EV market with an attention-grabbing price ticket, beneath $30,000 for the bottom mannequin, cheaper than Tesla’s Mannequin 3 in China.Xiaomi constructed a Beijing manufacturing unit able to producing 200,000 vehicles yearly earlier than it had regulatory approval to begin manufacturing in China. State-owned automaker BAIC Group disclosed in November it could make the vehicles for Xiaomi – on the similar Xiaomi plant.Xiaomi, which plans to promote the SU7 solely in China for now, didn’t instantly reply to a request for remark.Lei mentioned with out the assist of the Beijing authorities, it could have been “unimaginable” to finish the automobile in three years, in keeping with a transcript posted by auto blogger Chang Yan, who was amongst a gaggle of Chinese language reporters invited to interview Lei on Thursday.Musk additionally gained assist from the Shanghai authorities when organising the Tesla manufacturing unit there. The development of Tesla’s Shanghai plant took lower than a yr after it broke floor in 2019.Analysts stay cut up on whether or not Lei’s venture will transcend creating buzz to earn a living in a hyper-competitive EV market. “The chance is that they focus an excessive amount of on the EV house and lose concentrate on the sectors and merchandise that obtained them there,” mentioned Tu Le, founding father of consultancy Sino Auto Insights.Lei mentioned he had initially deliberate to promote the high-end model of the SU7 for round $48,500 earlier than reducing that to about $41,500 as different automakers slashed costs.”Xiaomi has sufficient money reserves to deal with any fierce competitors within the subsequent 5 years. And whether it is attainable, Xiaomi will search for methods to build up additional cash,” Lei mentioned.Xiaomi mentioned it had obtained 50,000 orders within the first 27 minutes of the SU7 happening sale. The corporate had not posted an up to date quantity on Friday.($1 = 7.2277 Chinese language yuan renminbi)(Reporting by Sarah Wu, extra reporting by Beijing and Shanghai newsrooms; Modifying by Brenda Goh, Kevin Krolicki and Susan Fenton)