The Chinese company is actively recruiting seasoned experts for its new European hub
Xiaomi is making bold moves to establish itself as a major global player in the electric vehicle industry. To accelerate its growth, the Chinese tech giant is actively recruiting top-tier talent from rival brands, including at least five senior executives from BMW. These recruits will contribute to Xiaomi’s research and development efforts in Europe, though the exact location of the R&D center remains undisclosed.
A deep dive into LinkedIn reveals that Xiaomi brought in Rudolf Dittrich from BMW last year to lead its European R&D division. Dittrich, with 15 years at BMW and experience with Williams and Sauber’s Formula 1 teams, brings invaluable expertise to the table. Additionally, Dusan Sarac, who previously worked at BMW and Rolls-Royce, has also joined Xiaomi’s European operations.
Reuters reports that Jannis Hellwig has also transitioned to Xiaomi, taking on a senior engineering role focused on performance development and integration. Meanwhile, the company is actively seeking top talent in Munich, including a senior automotive designer, exterior designer, and vehicle dynamics engineers.
While Xiaomi has yet to finalize the location of its European R&D center, it confirms the site is currently “in the process of planning.”
Xiaomi’s EV Expansion Push
Beyond hiring talent, Xiaomi has set an ambitious sales goal of 350,000 EVs in China this year. If achieved, this would surpass the combined 2024 EV sales of Volkswagen, Audi, BMW, Mercedes-Benz, and Porsche—a remarkable feat for a company that only started producing its SU7 electric sedan last year.
With the high-performance SU7 Ultra now on the market, Xiaomi’s momentum continues to grow. Looking ahead to 2025, the company is gearing up for the launch of the YU7, an electric SUV priced below the Tesla Model Y. Given the strong global demand for SUVs, Xiaomi expects the YU7 to surpass the SU7 in sales, further cementing its position in the EV space.
