On August 2, SAIC said on the interactive platform that the company has been working with numerous Internet enterprises to build a new industrial ecology through cross-border cooperation.
At the end of March 2021, Lei Jun, founder of Xiaomi Group, announced the official establishment of Xiaomi's smart electric vehicle project. Over the next ten years, Xiaomi will invest USD 10 billion (about CNY 64.66 billion) and CNY 10 billion in the first phase. Recently, Lei Jun also released recruitment of Xiaomi's Autonomous Driving Department on Weibo, which will recruit 500 staffers to develop Level-4 autonomous driving technology and support multi-location offices across the country.
In May 2021, Lei Jun visited SAIC-GM-Wuling (SGMW) Liuzhou's new energy vehicle production workshop and Wuling Hongguang Mini EV. In addition to SGMW, Lei Jun also visited BYD and other enterprises.
In recent years, SAIC has cooperated frequently with Internet giants. Apart from Xiaomi, the company has also partnered with Alibaba Group. In July 2014, Alibaba and SAIC signed an agreement that offered visions of an era of 'cars on the Internet.' In March 2015, Alibaba and SAIC each invested CNY 500 million to establish Banma Information Technology, putting forward the slogan of providing overall Internet automotive solutions for the whole industry. Additionally, in July 2021, SAIC Audi and AliYun officially signed a memorandum of cooperation, covering omni-marketing, connected cars, digital ecology, smart logistics and other fields.
At the end of November 2020, Alibaba officially entered the core automobile production field as Alibaba set up Zhiji Auto with SAIC and Zhangjiang Hi-tech Park. In December 2020, Zhiji Auto completed its registration with a registered capital of CNY 10 billion. SAIC invested CNY 5.4 billion, holding 54% of the equity, while Alibaba and Zhangjiang Hi-tech Park contributed CNY 1.8 billion, holding 18% of the equity respectively.