BMW i

Several executives in BMW’s electric vehicle leadership, including 20-year BMW veteran Carsten Breitfeld who reportedly developed the i8, left the German automaker to join a Chinese EV startup, according to a new WSJ report.

The startup in question is Future Mobility Corp, a newly formed EV company backed by Tencent Holdings.

Tencent is an important holding company in China with significant investments in several of the country’s biggest internet, video game and social media companies.
Expand
Expanding
Close

At an annual BMW Group meeting earlier today, CEO Harald Krüger seemed to have completely recovered from his accident with the Model X Falcon Wing door earlier this month, and announced the automaker’s next step in electric mobility: Project i 2.0.

Krüger confirmed that the BMW i brand (i3 and i8) already sold more than 50,000 vehicles and now with “i 2.0”, the group plan to expand the market with a new i3, a convertible i8 and an electric Mini.
Expand
Expanding
Close

In an interview at the Frankfurt Motor Show, BMW’s sales chief Ian Robertson revealed that the company is in the “final stages of consideration” to introduce new all-electric vehicles by expanding its “i” lineup.

Currently BMW only sells the i3 and the i8 under its electric “i” brand, but the German automaker is evaluating a “number of options” to take advantage of the new platform introduced in 2013.
Expand
Expanding
Close