When it comes to popular livestreamers, Lei Jun might be an unexpected one, but the Xiaomi CEO sure knows how to create a viral moment and capture the internet’s attention. Last week, Lei gave his fifth annual speech, which was livestreamed to over 14,890,000 viewers across multiple platforms within 3 hours.

In the three-part speech, Lei detailed the three years it took for Xiaomi to build its first car model, the Xiaomi SU7, launched this past March. Xiaomi’s journey to making cars started when the Xiaomi phone was blacklisted in the U.S. Despite the uphill battle, Xiaomi persevered and invested heavily into making the vehicle, finally creating its first car in record time.

Lei’s story was inspirational in of itself, but his delivery was what really captured the viewers. When talking about successfully launching the SU7, he referred to the experience as “going ashore” (上岸 shàngàn), internet slang that typically refers to the relief of getting into college or finding a job. When talking about hustle culture (卷 juăn), he said Xiaomi has never bowed down to it.

Lei’s propensity for virality can be traced back to a 2014 meme that emerged from a speech he gave in English for the launch of a Xiaomi product in India. Lei saying “thank you, are you OK?” was edited into a song on Bilibili that instantly became a viral sensation. Lei fully embraced the moment, and went on variety shows sponsored by Xiaomi, where he was introduced as a “man god” (男神 nánshén), bringing another wave of Lei fever online.

Most recently, Lei even opened his own Douyin account. He regularly posts short videos documenting what he wears, biking to work, or eating breakfast. In one post, Lei shared a clip of himself eating soy milk and youtiao for breakfast, and asked his fans: “What do you usually eat for breakfast?” The clip soon was soon memeified, with netizens jokingly commenting that white collar workers eat pain (吃苦 chīkǔ) for breakfast.

When SU7 was initially launched, Lei served as a successful salesperson for the car, but generated so much excitement about the jacket he wore in a promo image that it sold out. A video of him drifting in the SU7 was featured in his speech this time, and the clip seems destined to achieve its own viral moment.

At a time when livestreamers are shunned online for making out of touch comments, Lei, a billionaire himself, is using livestreams and the internet to make himself relatable to the public. This strategy allows consumers to see themselves through Lei and Xiaomi’s story, ultimately bringing products closer to their lives.

Banner image via Meijia Shidai.