China’s Xiaomi founder expects new electric SUV to hit market in July

BEIJING, May 22 (Reuters) – Xiaomi’s (1810.HK) new electric SUV, the YU7, is expected to enter the market in July, founder and CEO Lei Jun said in a Weibo post on Thursday.

The world’s third-largest smartphone maker will launch its second EV model later on Thursday.

Xiaomi will not disclose the official prices for the YU7, nor commence taking pre-orders for the new car at the pre-launch event, Lei said in the post.

The company will also unveil its self-developed XringO1 advanced mobile chip, new flagship smartphone and other products.

Xiaomi to launch YU7 SUV this week, eyeing Tesla’s market share

The new SUV is being positioned as a key competitor to Tesla’s (TSLA.O) best-selling Model Y. The redesigned Model Y, launched earlier this year, is priced from 263,500 yuan ($36,579) in China.