Former Tesla China executive Kong Yanshuang joins Xiaomi, automotive retail to undergo systematic integration

Ask AI · How does Kong Yanshuang’s Tesla experience reshape Xiaomi’s car sales?

Jiemian News reporter | Li Jiaqí

Jiemian News editor | Wenshuqi

On April 1, Jiemian News learned exclusively that Kong Yanshuang, the former Tesla China general manager, has joined Xiaomi. She will take over responsibilities for car sales from Li Xiaorui, the former Xiaomi Auto director. Kong Yanshuang started in early March and is currently in a handover period. As of now, Xiaomi has not yet issued an internal notice officially announcing her formal position.

Jiemian News sought verification from Xiaomi regarding the above information. As of the time of publication, Xiaomi has not yet responded.

Public information shows that Kong Yanshuang is a core executive at Tesla China. She has previously served as general manager of Tesla China’s South China region, general manager of the China region, and in other roles. For a long time, she has led the layout of Tesla’s sales system and brand promotion in the China market.

During her tenure as general manager of Tesla China’s South China region, she was responsible for the layout of service network outlets in key cities including Guangzhou and Shenzhen, as well as in third- and fourth-tier cities. Between 2022 and 2023, as Tesla China regional general manager, she accepted media interviews and introduced Tesla China’s performance and strategy, including milestones such as the Shanghai super factory and plans for bringing in vehicle models.

In May 2024, amid adjustments to Tesla’s management, Kong Yanshuang was transferred to the Shanghai region to replace the former sales leader, continuing to participate in the management of the China sales system and the push downward of that system.

Notably, another employee with a Tesla background also joined Xiaomi at the same time as Kong Yanshuang. That employee is named “Eason,” serving as a “political commissar” in Xiaomi Auto’s department, and is also a member of Xiaomi’s staff department.

Xiaomi Group’s staff department is a core unit that helps the CEO formulate and supervise the group’s development strategy. An insider familiar with Xiaomi told Jiemian News that it is extremely rare for a new hire to directly enter the staff department, but this also reflects indirectly the “value” of the employee and Xiaomi’s determination to enhance its current automobile retail capabilities.

Xiaomi offline stores. Photo by Jiemian News reporter Li Jiaqí.

Another Xiaomi Auto employee told Jiemian News that Xiaomi Auto’s retail system was planned from the beginning with reference to Tesla’s model. Currently, among regional managers and general managers of provincial companies, a considerable proportion of personnel have Tesla backgrounds. The recent addition of multiple Tesla-related executives will surely further integrate Xiaomi Auto’s retail system and better support the growth of its retail capabilities.

A top Xiaomi dealer also shared a similar view. He told Jiemian News that over the past two years, Xiaomi Auto has focused mainly on building products and brand strength, while overlooking the personal value of frontline sales. As a result, even salespeople recruited at high salaries from new companies wouldn’t stay for long. Since November last year, after Tesla people arrived, they started “intensifying management across processes, data, and people/vehicle-and-location (people, vehicles, and field management).” Now, frontline sales capabilities have improved noticeably.

In his view, Xiaomi Auto orders are no longer following a “surging” pace. This requires strengthening the sales team’s capabilities to handle the upcoming period of flat sales. Tesla’s approach to cultivating talent is systematic and structured, which fits well with Xiaomi’s current rhythm.

Previously, Xiaomi released the new generation Xiaomi SU7. According to official data, within just 34 minutes of the new SU7’s launch, the order count exceeded 15,000 units. As of March 23, cumulative orders exceeded 30,000 units.

At the earnings conference, Xiaomi Group President Lu Weibing said that Xiaomi Auto’s full-year deliveries in 2025 will exceed 410,000 units. As of February 13, 2026, Xiaomi Auto’s cumulative deliveries exceeded 600,000 units. Xiaomi’s full-year 2026 delivery target is 550,000 units.