Xiaomi crash video creators jailed as China cracks down on EV deepfakes

Chinese authorities have started holding social media influencers accountable for publishing fake crash footage and spreading malicious rumors about electric vehicles. Across the country, drivers have increasingly tried to excuse drunk or dangerous driving by blaming autonomous systems, or claimed false brake activations and unintended acceleration. Xiaomi's EV division has become a frequent target of such attacks, just as the company's Skynomad EREV lineup is gearing up for launch.

Over the past several months, Xiaomi has repeatedly gone public with reports of AI-generated smear campaigns aimed at its cars and executives. In the latest case, two users fabricated crash test footage designed to make it look like Xiaomi vehicles had failed in a collision. Chinese police responded with administrative detentions and fines, and Xiaomi says the offending posts have since been removed.

This was not an isolated incident. In June, authorities in Xi'an dismantled a larger operation. Three MCN content agencies and over a dozen individuals were accused of mass-producing AI-generated videos and posts targeting Xiaomi, with several suspects formally detained and equipment seized. Xiaomi warned that AI misuse for spreading disinformation "will carry consequences," a message aimed at deterring copycats as much as punishing past offenders.

Xiaomi is not alone in this fight, as NIO has been dealing with a nearly identical playbook. The automaker recently disclosed that police arrested a suspect who allegedly used AI tools to spread fabricated content about the company across thousands of social media accounts, racking up tens of millions of views. NIO has also pursued multiple civil defamation cases against bloggers over the past year and flagged a separate wave of attacks aimed at its Onvo brand and battery swap network, timed suspiciously close to its own new model launches.

This is a familiar problem across China's EV sector broadly. Authorities have stepped up crackdowns on fabricated crash footage and staged safety failures, some of it AI-assisted, aimed at damaging rival automakers' reputations in an increasingly cutthroat market. BYD has gone the same legal route, recently winning a court ruling against a blogger over fabricated claims about its components.

For Xiaomi specifically, the stakes feel higher as the Skynomad EREVs represent the company's inaugural push into this segment.