Xiaomi officially unveils its YU7 SUV and is gunning straight for the Tesla Model Y in China

At last! After plenty of teaser tidbits earlier this week, Chinese smartphone giant and young EV automaker Xiaomi has given us (nearly) all the details of its new YU7 SUV, inside and out, including its official launch plans. Originally described as a direct competitor to the Tesla Model Y, Xiaomi did not shy away from several direct comparisons during the YU7’s debut event.

Considering this is our third post about the Xiaomi YU7 SUV in as many days, we will skip the BEV’s history to today and focus on what we’ve learned this week, leading up to the public unveiling held in China this evening.

In a recent Weibo post, Xiaomi confirmed plans to unveil the YU7 during a product launch event in Beijing on May 22, marking a “new beginning for Xiaomi’s 15th anniversary.” On Wednesday, Xiaomi posted a brief video offering a glimpse of the YU7’s interior, including a slim display that runs across the entire dashboard below the windshield, which it calls “HyperVision.”

Following Xiaomi’s social media posts, we expected the tech company YU7 to confirm some of the specs from a 2024 regulatory filing we reported on in December 2024. Following today’s event, Xiaomi has confirmed many of the new SUV’s specs and shared how its trims will break down by performance. All are considered to be competitive with the Tesla Model Y (arguably better).

Xiaomi SUV to launch in July and best Tesla in many ways

Following the debut event, Xiaomi shared a detailed post on Weibo, which included all the images seen above as well as the following caption (translated from Chinese):

Xiaomi YU7, a luxury high-performance SUV. A design that stands the test of time. From proportions to details, it continues the family design, with 40+ wind resistance optimizations; High-tech luxury cockpit. Xiaomi Sky Screen panoramic display, dual-zone surround luxury cockpit, with a sense of technology and luxury; Powerful control experience. Maximum horsepower 690 PS, fastest 0-100 (km/h) acceleration 3.23s, maximum speed 253 km/h, equipped with V6s Plus Xiaomi super motor, luxury chassis configuration, and long battery life; Comprehensive upgrade of technical architecture. Armor cage steel-aluminum hybrid body, electronic and electrical architecture, and Xiaomi assisted driving have been fully upgraded.

When we first caught wind of Xiaomi’s second BEV model, the Chinese automaker was already promoting it as a direct competitor to the Tesla Model Y. We usually shrug off those comparisons unless they come directly from the automaker (which it rarely does). In this case, Xiaomi has been pulling no punches in publicly targeting the world’s best-selling BEV model.

For example, the YU7 SUV seats five and measures 4,999 mm in length, 1,996 mm in width, and 1,600 mm in height with a wheelbase of 3,000 mm (directly matching the 2024 regulatory filing mentioned above). For comparison, the refreshed Model Y, launched in China in January, measures 4,797 mm in length, 1,920 mm in width, and 1,624 mm in height, with a wheelbase of 2,890 mm.

When that facelifted Tesla model came out, the American automaker posted an image with the caption “Updated Model Y, compare away,” to which Xiaomi founder, chairman, and CEO Lei Jun shared a screenshot of the post with the simple caption, “Ok.”

Perhaps Jun took that as a challenge?

During the YU7’s unveiling, the Xiaomi founder continuously “compared away,” explaining how its SUV is superior to the Model Y in all key performance specifications. Like its SU7 sibling, the YU7 SUV will come available in three variants – Standard, Pro, and Max:

While the two variants of the Tesla Model Y sold in China are closely comparable to the YU7 Standard and Pro SUVs in terms of acceleration, Xiaomi blows them away in terms of range. The single-motor RWD and Long Range AWD variants of the Tesla Model Y offer a CLTC range of 593 km (369 miles) and 719 km (447 miles), respectively.

Lei Jun said that range is the number one factor consumers should consider when purchasing an EV, and the Xiaomi YU7 leads all mid- to large-SUVs in the market. Other features on the YU7 include a NVIDIA Thor smart driving chip, active air suspension, and an 800V platform that can gather up to 620 km (385 miles) of range in a 15-minute charge.

The Xiaomi founder said the YU7 SUV will hit the Chinese market in July 2025. We are still awaiting official pricing, but we’d imagine it will once again be “competitive” with Tesla.