Produced by Leida Finance | Written by Ding Yu | Edited by Meng Shuai

“Many people are taking things out of context and smearing us,” “Safety is the foundation, safety is the prerequisite.” Lei Jun, known for his refined image, recently posted multiple Weibo messages, personally stepping in to seriously refute rumors and respond to external doubts.

Notably, on the same day Lei Jun responded to safety concerns about Xiaomi Auto, news emerged that Wang Hua, Xiaomi's PR head, might be reassigned, drawing external attention.

Looking back at this year, Xiaomi Auto has faced constant controversies. Two traffic accidents in March and October, along with a recall in September, have repeatedly put Xiaomi Auto in the spotlight. Even Lei Jun, the company's leader, has seen his reputation affected.

Judging solely by financial metrics like delivery volume and gross margin, Xiaomi Auto seems to have not been significantly impacted. However, from the capital market's perspective, Xiaomi Group still faces severe challenges. As of November 18th's close, Xiaomi Group's market value has evaporated by over HK$500 billion from its year's peak.

It's worth mentioning that in the latest Q3 earnings report, Xiaomi's automotive and AI innovation business segments achieved single-quarter operating profit for the first time, recording an operating income of RMB 700 million.

Leida Finance notes that in the recently released 2025 Hurun Rich List, Lei Jun ranked 5th with a net worth of RMB 326 billion, making a strong comeback into the top five after a decade and earning the title of 'Growth King.'

Lei Jun Rarely Steps In to Seriously Address Issues, Xiaomi's Decade-Long 'PR Veteran' Potentially Reassigned

On November 16th, Lei Jun, Chairman of Xiaomi Group, posted several Weibo messages reiterating Xiaomi Auto's safety philosophy.

In these Weibo posts, Lei Jun shared several messages from late 2023 and early 2024, mainly focusing on his understanding of safety and the R&D standards for the SU7.

Among them, the first two emphasized the 'most stringent safety standards' adopted by Xiaomi Auto in terms of body design and battery, while the latter two reiterated the philosophy that 'safety is above all else.'

At that time, Lei Jun stated on Weibo that the SU7 adopts the three most stringent safety standards: C-NCAP 2024 version, five-star safety standard; E-NCAP 2023 version, five-star safety standard; C-IASI 2023 version, 3G+ excellent safety standard.

Leida Finance notes that some netizens commented, 'Many people are taking things out of context, saying that Xiaomi Auto's appearance is more important than safety.'

In response, Lei Jun pointed out, 'Many people on the internet are taking things out of context and smearing us,' and emphasized, 'Safety is the foundation, safety is the prerequisite,' and 'Safety is above all else.'

Lei Jun also said, 'In an interview last April, when discussing product definition, I said, 'For a car, appearance is the first priority.' Does this contradict 'Safety is the foundation, safety is the prerequisite?' Or in the same interview, when discussing design, I said that wheel rims are the hardest to design. What's the problem with that?'

Normally, Lei Jun is known for his approachable image, but this time he has unusually posted multiple serious responses to external doubts, reflecting the unfriendly public opinion environment Xiaomi has recently faced.

Notably, on the same day Lei Jun posted multiple Weibo messages responding to safety concerns about Xiaomi Auto, news of Wang Hua, Xiaomi's PR general manager, being reassigned also drew external attention.

According to public information, Wang Hua, born in 1979, is a media professional who joined Xiaomi's Marketing Department in 2015.

Tianyancha shows that in 2018, Xiaomi Group successfully listed on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange. At that time, Wang Hua supported the Group's PR work as a colleague from the China region.

In 2019, Wang Hua was reassigned to the Group's PR Department as the PR Director. By the end of the following year, he was promoted to Deputy General Manager of the Group's PR Department, overseeing daily operations and reporting to Group President Wang Xiang. In 2021, Wang Hua officially became the General Manager of the Group's PR Department.

Since then, besides daily PR work, Wang Hua has also attended Xiaomi's earnings call conferences multiple times as an important spokesperson.

As Xiaomi's top PR figure, Wang Hua has frequently helped Xiaomi refute rumors and respond on social media, becoming a 'well-known IP' for Xiaomi's PR. This year marks Wang Hua's tenth year at Xiaomi, and his position change might alter Xiaomi's external communication strategy to some extent.

As of November 17th, Xiaomi has not yet responded to rumors of Wang Hua's reassignment. However, Leida Finance notes that Wang Hua continued to update his Weibo normally on November 17th and 18th.

Lei Jun Loses Over 700,000 Followers in 30 Days, Xiaomi's Market Value Evaporates by Over HK$500 Billion

The current public opinion challenges faced by Xiaomi and the shift in Lei Jun's personal reputation might be related to the recent controversies involving Xiaomi Auto.

On the evening of March 29th this year, a Xiaomi SU7 Standard Edition was involved in a severe traffic accident on the Deqi Section of the Deshang Expressway, resulting in three fatalities.

On April 1st, a Xiaomi spokesperson stated that according to preliminary understanding, the vehicle was in NOA intelligent assisted driving mode at 116km/h before the accident.

On the same day, Lei Jun posted a commitment, 'No matter what happens, Xiaomi will not shy away. We will continue to cooperate with the police investigation, follow up on the progress of the incident, and do our best to respond to the concerns of the family and society.'

On April 3rd, the Traffic Management Bureau of the Anhui Provincial Public Security Department guided local public security organs to conduct an accident investigation. As of now, no further official information has been released.

A few months later, Xiaomi Auto became the focus of public opinion again due to a recall. On September 19th, Xiaomi Auto announced the recall of nearly 117,000 Xiaomi SU7 vehicles.

It is reported that some vehicles within the recall scope might have insufficient recognition, warning, or handling of extreme special scenarios when the L2 highway navigation-assisted driving function is enabled. If the driver does not intervene promptly, it might increase the collision risk, posing a safety hazard.

One wave has not yet subsided, and another rises. In the early morning of October 13th, a severe traffic accident occurred on the Tiangu Avenue Renshou Shigao Section in Chengdu, Sichuan, where a Xiaomi Auto caught fire after a collision, resulting in the driver's death.

According to media reports, on-site videos show that multiple passersby attempted to rescue the driver but were unable to open the door. Finally, firefighters arrived to extinguish the fire and used an electric saw to open the door.

In the afternoon of the same day, the Chengdu Municipal Public Security Bureau Traffic Management Bureau issued a traffic alert stating that the accident resulted in the death of the driver, Deng Moumou. According to tests, Deng Moumou was suspected of driving under the influence of alcohol, and the accident is under further investigation.

The two traffic accidents, combined with the recall incident, quickly sparked public discussions about the safety of Xiaomi Auto. The reliability of intelligent assisted driving, the safety of electric vehicle batteries, and whether doors can be opened smoothly after accidents have become focal points of netizens' attention.

Amid the public opinion controversy surrounding Xiaomi, Lei Jun, who has always enjoyed a good reputation among the public, has also been affected, with his online personal reputation taking a hit.

Huituan data shows that in the past month, Lei Jun's Douyin account has lost over 740,000 followers, with the latest follower count dropping to 43.791 million.

In the capital market, Xiaomi also faces severe challenges. As of November 18th's close, Xiaomi Group's stock price was HK$40.78 per share, down over 30% from the year's high of HK$61.45 per share, with the market value significantly shrinking by over HK$500 billion.

Delivery Performance Remains Strong, Automotive-Related Business Achieves Profitability

Despite recent public opinion controversies, Xiaomi Auto seems to have not been significantly affected in terms of delivery performance.

Leida Finance's research found that from April to June this year, Xiaomi Auto's monthly delivery volume remained between 25,000 and 30,000 units.

After the launch of the Xiaomi YU7 at the end of June, Xiaomi Auto's sales rose to another level, with delivery volumes exceeding 30,000 units for two consecutive months in July and August.

On November 1st, Xiaomi Auto officially announced that after exceeding 40,000 deliveries in September, its delivery volume exceeded 40,000 units again in October.

According to data from the Passenger Car Market Information Joint Committee of the China Automobile Dealers Association, Xiaomi Auto sold a total of 48,654 electric vehicles in October, ranking among the top in the new force players, even surpassing XPeng Motors (42,013 units), the highest among 'NIO, XPeng, and Li Auto,' by over 6,000 units. Moreover, relying solely on the Xiaomi YU7 model, Xiaomi achieved a wholesale sales volume of 33,662 units in October.

From a financial perspective, in the second quarter of this year, Xiaomi's smart electric vehicle and AI innovation business segments achieved revenue of RMB 21.3 billion, with the revenue proportion significantly increasing from 7.2% in the same period last year to 18.3%.

In terms of profit, in the second quarter, the gross profit of the smart electric vehicle and AI innovation business segments was RMB 5.6 billion, with a gross margin of 26.4%, nearly 5 percentage points higher than Xiaomi's largest business segment, Smartphone × AIoT. The operating loss was RMB 300 million.

At the Xiaomi Investor Conference held in June this year, Lei Jun stated that Xiaomi's automotive business losses are gradually narrowing, and it is expected to achieve profitability in the third to fourth quarter of this year.

Now, Xiaomi's automotive business has achieved its profitability goal as scheduled. According to the latest earnings report released by Xiaomi Group on November 18th, in the third quarter of this year, the company's smart electric vehicle and AI innovation business segments achieved revenue of RMB 29 billion, a record high, with a year-on-year increase of 199.2%.

At the same time, this business segment achieved single-quarter operating profit for the first time, with an operating income of RMB 700 million this quarter and a gross margin of 25.5%.

For comparison, XPeng Motors and NIO, which also claim to achieve profitability in the fourth quarter of this year, delivered 42,013 and 40,397 vehicles in October, respectively, setting their respective monthly delivery records.

However, in terms of gross margin, XPeng Motors and NIO are far less impressive than Xiaomi, the 'newcomer.' In the second quarter of this year, XPeng Motors' gross margin and automotive gross margin were 17.3% and 14.3%, respectively, while NIO's were 10% and 10.3%, respectively.

Regarding the highly concerned issue of profitability, XPeng Motors and NIO might be more 'anxious.' In the second quarter, although XPeng Motors' net loss has significantly narrowed, it still incurred a loss of about RMB 500 million, while NIO's loss in the same period approached RMB 5 billion.

Some analysts point out that as pioneers of China's new forces, 'NIO, XPeng, and Li Auto' all carry significant historical burdens to some extent. Their development paths and market environments differ from Xiaomi, which crossover (crosses over) into car manufacturing with its own traffic (online influence). Therefore, they cannot be simply compared.

Judging solely by delivery and some financial indicators, Xiaomi Auto seems to have not been significantly affected by public opinion, still maintaining strong growth momentum. However, the negative impact of the aforementioned controversies on Xiaomi's brand cannot be underestimated, which might be a key reason prompting Lei Jun to post three serious responses.

There are also voices suggesting that after the reassignment of Wang Hua, the former top PR figure, Xiaomi Auto and even the entire Xiaomi's marketing direction might undergo changes to better cope with market changes and public opinion challenges.

Leida Finance will continue to monitor Xiaomi's subsequent developments.