Xiaomi XRING O1 chip extends beyond phones, confirmed by Lu Weibing

In a surprise revelation of particular importance for Xiaomi’s ecosystem strategy, Group President Lu Weibing announced in a live broadcast event that the company’s much-awaited self-designed “XRING O1” chip will not be used in just smartphones. The revelation signifies an enormous growth of Xiaomi’s semiconductor plans and portends extended deployment of its custom silicon across the company’s varied product line, potentially extending to tablets, wearables, and smart home devices. The tactical decision follows Xiaomi’s relentless efforts at vertical integration to minimize technology reliance on third-party vendors.

Expanding Silicon Ecosystem

While Lu Weibing validated the larger plans for application of the XRING O1 chip, he stuck to secrecy on the manufacturing process and technical details. This reserved attitude probably stems from the strategic significance and competition involved in semiconductor development in today’s times.

The move beyond smartphones signals Xiaomi’s serious ambition to become an industry leader in the semiconductor sector following in the footsteps of other technology leaders who have been successful in producing custom silicon to drive differentiation in product offerings.

The Decade Plan of Lei Jun

This move is also in line with the CEO Lei Jun’s statement on May 15 in which he labeled the upcoming XRING O1 as “the interim outcome of Xiaomi’s ten years of chip manufacturing” and “a new starting point for Xiaomi to break through hard-core technology.”

Lei stressed that chip development is not only a technological milestone but also necessarily a matter of strategy, describing the venture as “the only way for Xiaomi to be a leader in hard-core technology.”

Future Applications in Upcoming Products

Analysts in the technology sector have guessed that the XRING O1 chip could become part of upcoming high-end offerings from Xiaomi, including the newly certified Xiaomi Pad 7 Ultra. This premium tablet boasts impressive specs:

14-inch display 120W fast charging support (MDY-17-EB charger)
Model number: 25053RP5CC
Focus on performance and productivity
The tablet is due to be launched exclusively in China for now, with no global release planned.

Those who would like to monitor Xiaomi chip deployment across devices can install the MemeOS Enhancer from the Play Store. This program gives one control of reserved Xiaomi features, system application upgrades, and direct OTA upgrade privileges not reliant on staged rollouts.

Source: ITHome