Chris Bangle becomes strategic consultant for Xiaomi EV Design. The American designer – well-known for his managerial roles in the design of automotive groups (Opel, Fiat, BMW) and Managing Director of Chris Bangle Associates Srl for the past 15 years, an Italian company based in Clavesana (Cuneo) engaged in strategic consulting, product design and animation – has signed a collaboration agreement with the global technology giant Xiaomi for the automotive sector. As a strategic design consultant, Chris Bangle will focus on guiding future projects and collaborating to bring forth key concepts to improve Xiaomi’s brand image in the automotive field. The agreement was signed in December 2023 and announced in China on the 28th of the same month during an an EV technology launch event dedicated to the media and the public.
The start of the collaboration took place with a visit to Xiaomi’s design centre in Shanghai and Beijing in December 2023, which allowed Chris Bangle to meet and get to know the automotive design team led by Tianyuan Li, Head of Xiaomi Design Automotive Group, a former BMW designer, to review the work done so far and establish the foundation of the strategic consultancy. Li said: ‘As a company operating in the global market, Xiaomi’s consumer electronics products are well received worldwide. Xiaomi SU7 is the first contribution we created for the automotive industry. Our future collaboration with Chris Bangle will bring Xiaomi EV design a better vision and mutual potential”.
Chris Bangle: “I have found Xiaomi’s automotive design team to be extremely talented and professional. Given the speed and depth with which this tech company has engaged in the automotive industry, the product we have achieved is remarkable. I am proud to be able to help Xiaomi – a company well known for excellence in product design – create a new emotional aesthetic with their car models. An aesthetic that I am sure will take the entire company to a new level of engaging design.
