Autohome founder's electric car foray draws Musk comparison

Beijing

LI XIANG was earning 10 times more than his parents from part-time jobs when he left school in 1999 to focus on a website before starting Autohome Inc, China's premier car-buying portal. Now, he plans to not just sell vehicles, but design and build them too.

Chehejia, or "Car and Home", has raised 2.5 billion yuan (S$525 million) in venture-capital funding since Mr Li started the Beijing-based electric vehicle business last July. A self-confessed petrolhead who's been likened to Tesla Motors Inc co-founder Elon Musk, the 34-year-old aims to start selling a commuter car that can be recharged as easily as a mobile phone by the end of 2017.