Xiaomi Auto Explores Every Major Autonomous Driving Path, Building a Smart Driving Team of Over 1,800 Engineers

IT Home, Dec 24 — According to a report published yesterday by 21 Auto Yijian Auto, Xiaomi is running internal pre-research across virtually all mainstream autonomous-driving directions on the market. Beyond end-to-end systems and VLA (Vision-Language-Action), Xiaomi is also exploring approaches including WA (World Action / “world behavior” models) and VA (Vision-Action), among others.

Chen Guang, Xiaomi Auto’s head of end-to-end development, told the outlet that competition is increasingly intense. He noted that this pressure can create anxiety across the industry, pushing teams to use various methods or technologies to make users feel a product is “more advanced.” In his view, however, whether it’s VA, WA, or VLA, the core question is the same: how to maximize the “intelligence density” of the model.

Chen emphasized that Xiaomi has never taken a “one-size-fits-all” stance when it comes to selecting a technical path. He argued that introducing new technologies should be a gradual process, and that being technically cutting-edge does not automatically translate into a better user experience. Ultimately, the real benchmark is whether users can perceive the improvement, trust it, and keep using it over the long term.

Chen also disclosed that Xiaomi’s intelligent driving team has grown to more than 1,800 members. He added that with strong infrastructure in place, the company doesn’t need to over-invest headcount whenever it explores a new direction—and Xiaomi’s DNA as a technology company naturally provides additional advantages.

Previously reported by IT Home, Xiaomi Auto officially introduced the “Xiaomi HAD Enhanced Edition” at the 2025 Guangzhou Auto Show, which opened on Nov 21. Building on the “10 million Clips” version, the new release brings in reinforcement learning and a world model.

Xiaomi Auto also shared performance figures on Nov 21, stating that since the 10 million Clips version launched on July 26, 2025, assisted-driving features have reached a 90% active usage rate.

The company added that assisted-driving users have reached 473,000, total assisted-driving mileage has exceeded 300 million kilometers, the system has helped avoid 457,000 potential collisions, and parking assist has been used 30.964 million times.