Gasgoo Munich- At the 2026 China Auto Chongqing Summit on June 13, Song Gang—Vice President of Xiaomi's Automotive Division and Chief of Staff—made his first public remarks on behalf of the company. He noted that the auto industry has entered an era of razor-thin margins, where manufacturing and supply chain capabilities are the fundamental factors determining survival. "Manufacturing is the third driving force, alongside the two carriages of product and brand," he said.Image Credit: China Auto Chongqing SummitSong Gang emphasized that manufacturing capabilities must reach upstream into R&D. Xiaomi's manufacturing team intervenes early in product development to assist R&D and supply chain teams with Design for Manufacturing (DFM). By feeding automation concepts back to researchers, they integrate automated manufacturing solutions directly into product designs. At the same time, Xiaomi is leveraging the group's IT and digital strengths to enable data collection and analysis across the entire production process, laying a solid foundation for product quality.On supply chain strategy, Song Gang was blunt: "The quality weakness in the supply chain determines the quality weakness of the entire automotive brand." He pointed out that a car consists of tens of thousands of parts, and automakers themselves manufacture only a small fraction. Xiaomi will "persist in in-house development" in core areas like chips, AI, and PCBs. In non-core sectors, however, the company insists that "a hundred flowers bloom." Through extensive cooperation, Xiaomi is importing digital, AI, and advanced manufacturing concepts into the supply chain—helping partners improve management and efficiency, which in turn feeds back into better cost control and delivery capabilities for the finished vehicle.Song Gang, former head of Tesla's Shanghai plant, joined Xiaomi in April 2026. He currently oversees production manufacturing, smart manufacturing, and system operations. Xiaomi's sales target for 2026 is 550,000 vehicles, with cumulative deliveries reaching approximately 80,000 units in the first quarter.
