From Lei Bu Si to Lei Shen.

Author | He Jian
Editor | Jiang Jiao
Cover | Screenshot of Xiaomi Conference

Twenty hours before Xiaomi Group's highly anticipated 15th anniversary strategic new product conference, Lu Weibing, Xiaomi Group's president, announced on social media, "Mr. Lei will speak throughout the event!"

Since Xiaomi ventured into the automotive industry, its founder, CEO, and undisputed spiritual leader, Lei Jun, has gradually shifted his focus from mobile phones to cars. He previously stated that half of his energy would be dedicated to the automotive business, with only about one-third reserved for the mobile phone business.

Starting from last year's Xiaomi 14 Ultra conference, Lu Weibing took over from Lei Jun as the keynote speaker for Xiaomi's mobile phone events. At this year's Xiaomi 15 Ultra and Xiaomi SU7 Ultra conferences, Lei Jun only appeared briefly at the beginning and during the car segment, while Lu Weibing and other executives presented multiple new products, including Xiaomi mobile phones and home appliances.

Recently, there has been much online discussion about Xiaomi facing marketing backlash, and the CEO marketing trend Lei Jun sparked in the automotive industry last year has gradually waned over the past few months. Lei Jun also disappeared from the public eye for over a month, suspending personal content posting on social platforms, halting public activities, and even missing the Shanghai Auto Show in April. It was only before the Xiaomi YU7 conference that he began to tentatively return to the stage.

It's hard to say if this previous silence was due to Xiaomi changing its marketing strategy—it was more like "staying out of the limelight" during the peak of public opinion. After a long period of personalized marketing centered around the founder, Xiaomi cannot turn back, nor can Lei Jun abandon his previous personal marketing strategy following a public uproar. Lei Jun's personal image is inextricably linked to the company and cannot be separated. He is not only the spokesperson for Xiaomi Auto but also for all Xiaomi products, including mobile phones, tablets, and TVs.

This conference on May 22 is unlike any previous Xiaomi event. It is not only Xiaomi's strategic conference celebrating its 15th anniversary but also the first major event after Xiaomi encountered the most severe crisis of confidence in its history. Whether to express strategic determination to the market or to rally company morale internally, Lei Jun needed to return to the stage.

On the journey from Lei Bu Si to Lei Shen, Lei Jun cannot turn back.

Return after a brief silence

Lei Jun is the CEO of a Chinese internet company who updates social media most frequently. He can post over ten Weibo entries a day, amounting to nearly 19,000 posts in total—1.6 times that of "Weibo King" Li Xiang. Over the past year, Lei Jun has conducted several hours of live streaming periodically. He is one of the entrepreneurs with the largest number of fans on any social platform and a regular on various trending topics lists.

However, following the Xiaomi SU7 accident on the Anhui Expressway at the end of March, Lei Jun's posting frequency visibly decreased. After posting on April 1, "I shouldn't wait any longer, I must stand up," he did not update for five consecutive days. For over a month thereafter, besides reposting relevant Xiaomi news, he did not produce any personal social content, stopped posting gym check-ins, stopped sharing personal photography, and almost halted all external activities.

During Lei Jun's month-long silence, Xiaomi's presence on social platforms also became scarce. There were fewer Weibo trending topics, and Lei Jun's male protagonist videos on Xiaohongshu disappeared. Earlier market reports indicated that Xiaomi's YU7 technology conference was originally scheduled to be held on the eve of the Shanghai Auto Show in April, with the Xiaomi YU7 set to be unveiled at the event. However, only the Xiaomi SU7 was unveiled at the Shanghai Auto Show, and Lei Jun was absent.

Nevertheless, corresponding to Lei Jun's brief social media silence, Xiaomi Auto faced constant turmoil in public opinion. The Xiaomi SU7 Ultra perforated panel began deliveries at the end of April, and some first-batch car owners discovered that Xiaomi's previously promised carbon fiber dual-airflow front hood had not changed its internal structure and lacked an airflow function. Multiple media reports stated that some car owners believed Xiaomi was suspected of false advertising and demanded a refund.

On May 7, Xiaomi Auto issued a public announcement acknowledging that the carbon fiber dual-airflow front hood only provided partial airflow export and auxiliary front compartment cooling functions, and "deeply apologized for the lack of clarity in the previous information." For undelivered orders, Xiaomi Auto offered a limited-time modification service, and users who had picked up their cars or locked in their orders would receive 20,000 points (worth approximately 2,000 RMB) as compensation.

Lei Jun did not respond to the controversy regarding the carbon fiber front hood on Weibo. He resumed regular updates starting from May 10, posting gym check-ins. He said that the past month had been the most difficult period since founding Xiaomi, his emotions had been low, and he had canceled some meeting arrangements and business trip plans, also suspending some social media interactions. He had been very busy over the past few years, but during this time, he could take a moment to calm down and reflect, gaining some insights.

Lei Jun's Weibo

"Recently, I read many friends' comments, and I was particularly moved. Your concern and support have given me great confidence and gradually restored my courage and determination to move forward, and my state is starting to recover," Lei Jun said.

Similar to the comments section of Lei Jun's apology Weibo post on April 1, this post was still filled with messages supporting Mr. Lei. The most liked comment expressed the hope that Xiaomi would increase investment in legal affairs, uncover the black hands behind the negative articles, and "vent the anger of Xiaomi fans recently!"

Shortly after Lei Jun resumed updating his social media, Xiaomi Group's Legal Department issued an announcement on May 19 stating that they had learned from the judiciary that a previously reported organized and premeditated online black PR case involving Xiaomi had been solved, and multiple criminal suspects had been taken into criminal compulsory measures in accordance with the law. Xiaomi's Legal Department disclosed in detail the "means of committing crimes" of the relevant "criminal gang" in the announcement, including using automatic copywriting software to fabricate false information about Xiaomi and manipulating nearly 10,000 social media accounts.

Xiaomi Legal Department's Weibo

This announcement sparked numerous discussions online, including the wording and information sources. Currently, this post is no longer visible on the Xiaomi Legal Department's account. Screenshots circulating online show that this announcement, which was reposted by Xiaomi executives including Lei Jun and Wang Hua, violated relevant provisions of the Weibo Community Convention.

For Xiaomi's 15th anniversary strategic new product conference held on May 22, these minor controversies in the public opinion field did not have much impact. The foundation for Xiaomi to prepare for Lei Jun's return to the social sphere was Xiaomi's breakthrough in self-developed chips. Simultaneously with the conference, Lei Jun announced to the public that Xiaomi's self-developed and designed mobile phone SoC chip Xuanjie O1 had begun mass production.

CCTV News posted on Weibo that Xiaomi would become the fourth company in the world to release a self-developed and designed 3nm process mobile phone processor chip after Apple, Qualcomm, and MediaTek. People's Daily commented that Xiaomi had continuously brought breakthrough innovations in the fields of new energy vehicles and domestic chips, proving that as long as one is determined to work hard, there are no insurmountable mountains, and as long as one catches up, latecomers will always have opportunities.

Lei Jun reposted screenshots of these two comments, saying thank you for everyone's recognition and support.

A "pre-conference" for Xiaomi YU7

"The official price will not be announced, nor will small reservations be opened." Before the conference officially began, Lei Jun set the tone for the entire event, calling it a "pre-conference."

Xiaomi's 15th anniversary strategic new product conference can be roughly divided into two segments. The first half focused on the release of Xiaomi's chip Xuanjie O1, Xiaomi mobile phone 15S Pro, as well as new mobile phone and IoT products such as tablets, watches, and TVs. The second half was dedicated to the release of Xiaomi's second car, the YU7.

However, before the entire conference began, Lei Jun first announced Xiaomi's R&D investment plan for the next five years. He said that Xiaomi had invested 102 billion yuan in R&D over the past five years and expected to invest 30 billion yuan in R&D this year. In the next five years, Xiaomi expects its R&D investment to reach 200 billion yuan—basically 40 billion yuan per year.

From the perspective of current corporate external PR, first emphasizing the company's determination and belief in independent research and development is a choice that will never go wrong. Xiaomi's scale of R&D investment is not small either. For comparison, NIO, an automotive company often questioned for burning money, has a total annual R&D investment of only about 13 billion yuan.

The entire conference was still imbued with Lei's style, discussing the difficulties of R&D, comparisons with competitors, and ultimately filling it with value and sentiment. At the previous Xiaomi SU7 conference, Lei Jun said he created a high-performance luxury sedan for the elite of the times, for drivers on the road of dreams. This time for the Xiaomi YU7, he defined the target audience as people who "cannot tolerate mediocrity" and "always walk at the forefront of the times." In terms of how to provide value to users, the entire Chinese automotive industry probably has no rival to Xiaomi.

Xiaomi YU7 / Image source: Lei Jun's Weibo

The Xiaomi YU7 is the second model launched by Xiaomi Auto, positioned as a mid-to-large SUV. Similar to the Xiaomi SU7 targeting the Tesla Model 3, Lei Jun compared it to the Tesla Model Y at this conference.

In the Chinese automotive market, SUV sales far exceed sedan sales. Last year, about 176,800 Model 3s were sold in China, but Model Y sales reached 476,000. In other words, compared to the previously released Xiaomi SU7, the Xiaomi YU7 has a larger market space and better prospects. However, the market environment facing the YU7 is already very different from that of the SU7, and whether it can replicate the explosive sales of the SU7 remains unknown.

When the Xiaomi SU7 was previously released, there was much online ridicule about the "Bu Shi Mi" (a play on the name Xiaomi and Porsche). This time, the Xiaomi YU7, due to its similarity to the Ferrari Purosangue, also attracted ridicule from many meddlesome people, calling it the "Fa La Mi." The main color of the Xiaomi YU7, "Jewel Green," is also somewhat similar to Ferrari's exclusive Verde Dora color.

When the conference was held, Ferrari China posted an article titled "Mr. Ferrari's Exclusive Purosangue," which was described by the media as a "direct confrontation." Ferrari China specifically pinned this article to the top. However, later someone explained in the comments section that May 22 was the 80th birthday of Piero Ferrari.

Lei Jun did not mention recent controversies about Xiaomi Auto during the conference. When he first came on stage, he seemed a bit reserved, with less significant emotional fluctuations and expressions. Halfway through the conference, Lei Jun began to discuss the difficulties Xiaomi had faced over the past decade in chip development, and his voice finally choked up. "Don't be afraid, persevere, and persist until the final victory," he said, prompting the audience to erupt in applause.

The current controversy surrounding Xiaomi Auto still inevitably affects Lei Jun. At the end of the conference, he announced Xiaomi's elite driving advanced driving training program.

Unlike previous Xiaomi elite driving programs, which mainly focused on racetracks, this advanced driving training includes a lot of basic driving instruction, including acceleration, braking, emergency lane change exercises, slalom exercises, and low-adhesion road driving exercises. "From theory to practice, to teach everyone how to drive well and understand the boundaries of the car," Lei Jun said.

This can be considered Lei Jun's response to previous internet accusations that Xiaomi Auto's high horsepower has led to frequent accidents.

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