On March 29, Lei Jun stood at the podium of China’s most prestigious electric vehicle (EV) gathering, the China EV100 Forum. Making his first-ever appearance at the influential industry event, the Xiaomi Corp. founder was riding a wave of extraordinary success. His company’s SU7 electric sedan flew off production lines, selling more than 136,000 vehicles in just nine months and positioning Xiaomi as a rising star in the domestic auto industry.