Author | Yanshulou
These days, Xiaomi and Lei Jun are being backlashed by traffic.
It is visible that Lei Jun lost 40,000 followers, and Xiaomi’s stock price fell by 13%.
After the Xiaomi explosion in Chengdu, I wrote an article titled “This car accident cannot blame Xiaomi” and tried to guide the public to objectively view the electric vehicle technology issue from a technical perspective.
My core viewpoints are three: first, the main cause of the car accident was drunk driving and speeding; second, the inability to open the car door after a violent impact is a common problem; third, the instantaneous explosion of the battery is the biggest technical obstacle.
This article was severely criticized by readers, and even many readers thought I was paid by Xiaomi. I was also very indignant and almost swore to prove my innocence. The way to distinguish whether it is a public relations article is very simple, that is, to see if the comment section is controlled.
If I was really paid, the client would not allow a large number of unfavorable comments to appear in the comment section. But behind Xiaomi’s article, I chose to automatically select the comments. I think allowing open and full public discussion is more important than the viewpoint itself.
Of course, I also endured tremendous pressure. Affected by this, some more impulsive readers unfollowed me, which was something that had never happened before. So I later reflected on why this happened, was it my problem, or the readers’ problem?
Fortunately, my reflection soon had an answer: the problem was that I didn’t look at the problem from the perspective of the consumer. As a time commentator who claims to “speak the truth only for the people”, instead of standing from the consumer’s perspective, but empathizing with capital, it’s only right to be criticized for being paid.
After all, human life is at stake, and after all, the right to life should be put first. In the video, several passers-by’s hands were bleeding from hitting the door, but they couldn’t open the car door, watching the young lives die, so the public subconsciously questioned why the car door couldn’t be opened, which is a very natural emotional substitution.
I found my problem, but unfortunately, Lei Jun didn’t. 72 hours later, he appeared at the 2025 World Intelligent Connected Vehicle Conference, not only did not apologize for the Chengdu car accident, but instead shouted, “Jointly resist cyber water armies, black public relations, and other online chaos.”
This sentence itself is not a problem, but the remains of the driver who died in the Chengdu Xiaomi car accident are not cold, instead of appeasing the public with a sincere attitude, but secretly pushing the responsibility to the cyber water armies and black public relations, it is hard not to make people associate and over-interpret, even I, who am indifferent, feel it is inappropriate.
I understand that the competition among domestic car companies is fierce, and all car companies have a group of IPs that have been fighting for a long time. But from my perception, Xiaomi is not worse than its peers in this regard, even Liu Qiangdong is willing to admit defeat. So Lei Jun’s grievance at this sensitive point in time feels somewhat like “let them eat cake”, which makes people feel quite uncomfortable.
It is not ruled out that there are indeed some water armies targeting Xiaomi to create momentum, but I think that as an enterprise, it should have the ability to distinguish based on facts. Which are well-intentioned, and which are objective, you cannot refuse to listen to any criticism, and even attribute all criticism to the fact that competitors’ ambition is not dead, this is a dangerous sign.
It is said that Yicai yesterday published a comment “Xiaomi, don’t let young people’s first car become the last one”, and then deleted “Xiaomi” from the title, and replaced the first picture with an AI picture. Yicai official media, but the official media is also afraid of legal affairs.
I hope Lei Jun and I should be able to withstand criticism. Of course, I am not worthy of being compared with Lei Jun, but in the matter of humbly accepting criticism, we can be the same. I have millions of readers, which does not mean that all my views are absolutely correct, and I cannot accept readers’ different opinions or even criticism.
Similarly, Xiaomi’s success in recent years is inseparable from Lei Jun, but it does not mean that Lei Jun is a god, and is absolutely authoritative and always correct. What the public wants is an attitude, not marketing rhetoric. Even if Xiaomi is far ahead, it is not perfect and cannot listen to any suggestions.
Some netizens have dug up many of Lei Jun’s outrageous remarks, such as “speed is not just a parameter, but a belief”; “Our first definition of the product is that appearance is king, and the car looks good is the first priority”. It must be said that Xiaomi understands the market and understands users.
But cars are not mobile phones after all, respecting user preferences is one thing, and respecting safety is another. Safety is the underlying logic of car manufacturing. Copying the success of Xiaomi mobile phones to Xiaomi cars, and maintaining the marketing inertia that has been successful before, is the root cause of Xiaomi’s illness.
From this perspective, Xiaomi and Lei Jun are being backlashed by their own traffic. The public is not against cross-border car manufacturing, but against excessive marketing, and against the Jia Guolong-ization. Judging from the loss of 290,000 followers in one month, it shows that the Mi fans are removing the charm, and the myth is being dissolved.
Facts have proved that making cars is really not just about having money, ensuring safety is the core. If there is a problem with the mobile phone, at most you can change one, but if there is a problem with the car, it is a matter of life and death. I heard that JD.com is also preparing to make cars, hoping to set an example for Lei Jun.
The purpose of our Party is to serve the people wholeheartedly, and the ruling concept of our Party is that the people come first, and life comes first, putting the safety of the people’s lives in the first place. I think this should also be the fundamental principle of all enterprises.
I hope Lei Jun can realize this, no matter how big your company is, you are a Chinese enterprise, and a people’s enterprise.
I also hope that at the next press conference, don’t talk about parameters, talk about how to open the car door within 180 seconds.
Talk about how to get people out of the fire first, and then scold the cyber water armies, okay?
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