What you need to know
- Reports allege Xiaomi has “internally” notified its members about the creation of a “chip platform department” to facilitate its custom chip ambitions.
- The Chinese OEM has reportedly tapped Qin Muyun, who has a history as Qualcomm’s former senior director of product marketing to lead the charge.
- Xiaomi was reportedly looking to invest 30 billion yuan (~$4.1 billion) in 2025 for its in-house chip creation dreams last November.
New reports pile on the in-house chip rumors for Xiaomi as the company allegedly makes a big move to secure that future.
The report from ITHome (Chinese) cites supposed sources that claim Xiaomi has “internally” announced the start of a “chip platform department”(via Gizmochina). The OEM is looking to reduce its reliance on outside sources for chips for its future devices. As such, Xiaomi allegedly tapped Qin Muyun, with history as Qualcomm’s former senior director of product marketing to lead the department.
There isn’t much left to chew through as Xiaomi hasn’t announced the existence of its chip platform department officially to the public.
Reports add Qin Muyun will report to Xiaomi’s Li Jun, the general manager of its product department.
The post by Gizmochina reiterates recent leaks about Xiaomi’s first alleged in-house chip, which could pack flagship specs — at least in one area. The publication claims the chip could feature a Cortex X925 core at 3.2GHz, which is the same one found in the Dimensity 9400 SoC. The other cores are rumored to come from a past-generation, leading some to believe Xiaomi may skip its flagships with its first chip.
Long-standing Ambitions
Reports about Xiaomi’s growing interest in manufacturing in-house chips surfaced in November. The Chinese OEM’s close relationship with Qualcomm was highlighted; however, Xiaomi is more interested in becoming “self-sufficient” instead. MediaTek is another company Xiaomi would like to cut back from. While the company has actively worked with Qualcomm for SoCs, it states it’s implemented additions atop the brand’s chips for its consumers.
One such addition involved upgrades to improve power management capabilities and “graphic enhancements.”
This was a long-time aspiration for Xiaomi’s Chairman and CEO Lei Jun, who stated in October the company would invest roughly 30 billion yuan (~$4.1 billion) in 2025 for in-house chips. Rumors state could enter mass production sometime this year.
Xiaomi also faces the possibility of leaning on TSMC, like Google’s did when it broke away from Samsung. The true power of Xiaomi’s future custom chip is unknown. Moreover, where we could see it first appear is unclear, though it may happen in late 2025 if not 2026.
