Xiaomi speeds auto strategy with Deepmotion purchase

Xiaomi Corp, which has posted a record high revenue in the second quarter, said on Wednesday it will use US$77.4 million to acquire auto tech firm Deepmotion Tech as part of its car-making strategy.

Deepmotion, with autonomous driving technology and various patents, will help Xiaomi speed up its car-making plans, said the Hong Kong-listed firm.

The US$77.37 million deal involves US$24.4 million in cash and the rest in shares. After the deal, Deepmotion will become wholly-owned subsidiary of Xiaomi.

The company focuses on providing algorithms for the perception, positioning, planning and control of advanced driver assistance systems, as well as a complete set of software solutions for autonomous driving applications.

Xiaomi plans to invest US$10 billion in the electric car business over the next decade, said Lei Jun, Xiaomi's CEO.

Deepmotion has strong technical reserves and research and development capabilities on autonomous driving's perception, positioning, planning and control for advanced assisted driving systems applications. It will strengthen the company's core technologies and skills in the smart electric vehicle business.

Deepmotion has 16 core patents such as high-precision mapping, 3D obstacle detection and various ADAS applications, according to PatSnap, a patent data service provider.

Xiaomi yesterday also posted record-high revenue of 87.8 billion yuan (US$13.7 billion) in the second quarter, up 64 percent year on year.

Smartphone sales jumped 87 percent, helping it surpass Apple to become the No.2 brand globally.