Connect with us

Published

on

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).

Advertisement – scroll for more content

  • Xiaomi SUV
  • Xiaomi SUV
  • Xiaomi SUV
  • Xiaomi SUV

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:

YU7 Variant Powertrain Battery Chem./ Size Range (CLTC) Power Acceleration
0-100 km/h
Standard Single RWD LFP / 96.3 kWh 835 km
(519 miles)
320 Ps
(~316 hp)
5.88 sec
Pro Dual AWD LFP / 96.3 kWh 770 km
(479 miles)
496 Ps
(~489 hp)
4.27 sec
Max Dual AWD Lithium Ternary / 101.7 kWh 760 km
(472 miles)
690 Ps
(~681 hp)
3.23 sec

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.

FTC: We use income earning auto affiliate links. More.

Continue Reading

Environment

Podcast: EV/Solar killing bill moves forward, Elon lies about Tesla’s demand, cheaper EVs, and more

Published

on

By

Podcast: EV/Solar killing bill moves forward, Elon lies about Tesla's demand, cheaper EVs, and more

In the Electrek Podcast, we discuss the most popular news in the world of sustainable transport and energy. In this week’s episode, we discuss the EV/Solar killing bill moving forward, Elon lying about Tesla’s demand, cheaper EVs coming, and more.

The show is live every Friday at 4 p.m. ET on Electrek’s YouTube channel.

As a reminder, we’ll have an accompanying post, like this one, on the site with an embedded link to the live stream. Head to the YouTube channel to get your questions and comments in.

After the show ends at around 5 p.m. ET, the video will be archived on YouTube and the audio on all your favorite podcast apps:

Advertisement – scroll for more content

We now have a Patreon if you want to help us avoid more ads and invest more in our content. We have some awesome gifts for our Patreons and more coming.

Here are a few of the articles that we will discuss during the podcast:

Here’s the live stream for today’s episode starting at 4:00 p.m. ET (or the video after 5 p.m. ET)

FTC: We use income earning auto affiliate links. More.

Continue Reading

Environment

Circle K just opened a new spot exclusively for EV charging with no gas pumps in sight

Published

on

By

Circle K just opened a new spot exclusively for EV charging with no gas pumps in sight

This is what the future of travel will look like. Circle K opened its first location exclusively for EV charging in Europe. The site features ten ultra-fast EV chargers and a convenience store while you wait.

Circle K opens first EV charging-only site in Europe

The new EV charging hub is located in Gårda, near Gothenburg, Sweden. It’s Circle K’s largest EV charging-only location with ten 400 kW chargers that can recharge from 0 to 80% in around 15 minutes.

Kempower supplied two 600 kW Power Units and ten Single Satellite chargers that can deliver up to 400 kW of power.

With an improved version of Kempower’s Autocharge feature, the system can store your information so that the next time you visit, all you have to do is plug in. The system will recognize your vehicle and bill you automatically.

Advertisement – scroll for more content

While you wait, there’s a 1,076 ft² (100 m²) convenience store that offers “a complete retail experience,” offering food, drinks, Wi-Fi, and plenty of seating.

The site expects heavy traffic on Sweden’s E6, with over 10,000 vehicles travelling on the motorway daily.

Circle-K-EV-Charging
Circle K opens its first EV charging-only site in Europe (Source: Kempower)

The new EV charging-only site comes after Circle K opened its largest EV charging hub in Sweden. Located just southwest of Stockholm, the flagship location has 26 fast chargers that can be used with light and heavy-duty vehicles.

Circle K now has over 3,000 branded chargers across Europe and will continue adding to its network as demand for EV charging rises.

Circle-K-EV-charging
Circle K’s largest electric vehicle charging hub in Sweden (Source: Circle K)

With around 17,000 locations globally, the company said it’s “uniquely positioned” to support the transition to electric vehicles.

Will we see Circle K open a location exclusively for EVs in the US? As more electric cars hit the road, more charging options will be needed. A few convenience stores, including 7-Eleven, are already rolling out fast chargers. Through 7Charge, 7-Eleven aims to build “one of the largest and most compatible” EV fast charging networks of any retailer in North America.

FTC: We use income earning auto affiliate links. More.

Continue Reading

Environment

Trump signs orders to overhaul Nuclear Regulatory Commission, speed reactor deployment

Published

on

By

Trump signs orders to overhaul Nuclear Regulatory Commission, speed reactor deployment

US President Donald Trump signs executive orders in the Oval Office of the White House in Washington, DC, on May 23, 2025.

Mandel Ngan | Afp | Getty Images

President Donald Trump signed a series of executive orders on Friday to overhaul the Nuclear Regulatory Commission and speed the deployment of new nuclear power reactors in the U.S.

The NRC is a 50-year-old, independent agency that regulates the nation’s fleet of nuclear reactors. Trump’s orders call for a “total and complete reform” of the agency, a senior White House official told reporters in a briefing. Under the new rules, the commission will be forced to decide on nuclear reactor licenses within 18 months.

Trump said Friday the orders focus on small, advanced reactors that are viewed by many in the industry as the future. But the president also said his administration supports building large plants.

“We’re also talking about the big plants — the very, very big, the biggest,” Trump said. “We’re going to be doing them also.”

Nuclear executives joined Trump for the signing ceremony, including Constellation CEO Joe Dominguez. Constellation is the largest operator of nuclear plants in the U.S. Nuclear stocks rallied Friday in response to the president’s actions.

NRC overhaul

U.S. President Donald Trump listens as Joseph Dominguez, President and Chief Executive Officer of Constellation, speaks in the Oval Office on the day Trump is expected to sign executive orders, at the White House in Washington, D.C., U.S., May 23, 2025.

Kent Nishimura | Reuters

Dominguez said the nuclear industry’s biggest problem has been regulatory delay. Constellation is aiming to bring the Unit 1 reactor at Three Mile Island back online in 2028 after it closed for economic reasons. A separate reactor, Unit 2, was the site of a partial meltdown at Three Mile Island in 1979.

“We’re wasting too much time on permitting and we’re answering silly questions, not the important ones,” the Constellation CEO said.

Trump’s orders also create a regulatory framework for the Departments of Energy and Defense to build nuclear reactors on federal land, the administration official said.

“This allows for safe and reliable nuclear energy to power and operate critical defense facilities and AI data centers,” the official told reporters. The NRC will not have a direct role, as the departments will use separate authorities under their control to authorize reactor construction for national security purposes, the official said.

Boost uranium mining

The president’s orders also aim to jump start the mining of uranium in the U.S. and expand domestic uranium enrichment capacity, the official said. Trump’s actions also aim to speed up reactor testing at the Department of Energy’s national laboratories.

Investment in nuclear power is growing in the U.S. after a long period of financial turmoil for the industry, including the shutdown of a dozen reactors in recent years as the industry struggled to compete against cheap and abundant natural gas.

The cooling towers of the Three Mile Island nuclear power plant in Middletown, Pennsylvania, Oct. 30, 2024.

Danielle DeVries | CNBC

Building new nuclear plants in the U.S. is notoriously slow and expensive. The two new reactors that recently came online at Plant Vogtle near Augusta, Georgia took seven years longer-than-planned to build, and came in $18 billion over budget.

But the computer technology industry is now driving the revival in nuclear as it races to meet growing electricity demand from data centers used to drive artificial intelligence. Three Mile Island is expected to return to service with financial support from Microsoft, for example, and Alphabet and Amazon are investing in small, advanced reactors.

Continue Reading

Trending