Huawei CEO: "Xiaomi Has Lowered Industry Standards"
Xiaomi President Responds on SNS: "Xiaomi Is Built on Strong Product Capabilities"
In response to comments made by Richard Yu, CEO of Huawei's consumer business, who said that "Xiaomi has dominated the market through brand marketing despite poor product quality," Lei Jun, CEO of Xiaomi, countered that this was "a kind of compliment."
According to China Media Group on June 2, CEO Yu stated at the "Future Automotive Pioneers Conference" on May 31, "Other companies can sell out even if they produce only one car a year," and added, "Electric vehicles lack competitiveness in terms of quality and autonomous driving, and their product quality is not that good, yet they have dominated the market through brand marketing."
He continued, "Our (Huawei's) products are superior, but it is inevitable that our sales volume will lag behind," adding, "According to Huawei's standards, it is impossible to dominate the market with just one car," and complained that such companies (referring to Xiaomi) have lowered industry standards.
China Media Group reported that although CEO Yu did not explicitly mention the company's name, the context clearly targeted Xiaomi. The report also included reactions from netizens on social networking services (SNS), such as "Saying only one car is produced a year refers to the SU7 strategy," and "Mentioning poor quality alludes to the recent accident involving Xiaomi."
On the same day, Lu Weibing, President of Xiaomi, posted on SNS, "Xiaomi's products are based on strong product capabilities," quoting Mo Yan's words that "slander is also a kind of compliment." Lei Jun also shared data on SNS showing that SU7 deliveries had surpassed 28,000 units, writing, "Slander is also a compliment."
China Media Group commented, "The war of nerves between the CEOs of Huawei and Xiaomi may appear to be a matter of pride, but it is actually a microcosm of the changing automotive industry," and added, "Rather than disparaging competitors, companies should strive to contribute to industry development and provide real benefits to consumers by offering better products."
Meanwhile, Xiaomi recently unveiled the YU7, an electric sport utility vehicle (SUV), and is promoting it as a "luxury SUV." The YU7 is reported to have a minimum driving range of 760 kilometers on a single charge.
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