"Aiming for the Best Smartphone by Targeting the iPhone"
"If You Find Areas Where We Surpass Apple, Please Applaud"
Lei Jun, CEO of Xiaomi, announced that the company is targeting Apple as he unveiled its independently developed mobile chip at a new product launch event.
According to Chinese local media outlets Jimu News and Shangguan News on May 22, Lei introduced Xiaomi's self-developed mobile system-on-chip (SoC), the "Xuanjie O1" (Xring O1), at the company's 15th anniversary strategic new product launch event. He stated, "We are targeting the iPhone in order to create the best smartphone," and added, "If that's the case, our chip should also be able to compete with Apple's."
This mobile chip will be installed in the Xiaomi 15S Pro, the company's latest flagship model commemorating its 15th anniversary, as well as the Xiaomi Pad 7 Ultra and the Xiaomi Smartwatch S4.
Lei Jun compared the performance of the Xring O1 in detail with Apple's chips, emphasizing, "It is impossible to surpass Apple, which is at the top of the world from the beginning, but even achieving this level of performance was not easy." He added, "If you discover areas where our products surpass Apple, please applaud, because even surpassing them by a small margin is extremely difficult." Bloomberg interpreted this as "a move that demonstrated Xiaomi's intention to fully compete with the American big tech companies."
Xiaomi, the world's third-largest smartphone manufacturer, also produces home appliances and electric vehicles. As competition in the Chinese smartphone market intensifies, the company is accelerating its mobile chip development efforts. Lei Jun said that Xiaomi has been researching and developing chips for 11 years, stating, "The hardships and sweat we have endured over these 11 years are beyond words." He continued, "I realized that Xiaomi would have to fight an unavoidable and difficult battle to become a core technology company," revealing that the company spent four years and invested 13.5 billion yuan (about 2.58 trillion KRW) in developing this chip. He further explained that the chip-related team alone consists of 2,500 members, and this year's chip R&D budget has exceeded 6 billion yuan (about 1.15 trillion KRW).
Xiaomi also announced a plan to invest 200 billion yuan (about 38 trillion KRW) in research and development (R&D) over the next five years.
Xiaomi CEO Lei Jun is giving a speech at the launch event of Xiaomi's XRING O1 chipset, the 15S Pro smartphone, and the Pad 7 Ultra held in Beijing. Photo by AFP Yonhap News
According to reports, Lei Jun also unveiled the company's first electric SUV, the YU7, on the same day. During the event, which was broadcast live online, he initially introduced the mobile chip while wearing a dark navy jacket, and then changed into a light beige jacket when presenting the YU7.
The YU7, aimed at the premium segment, is scheduled for official release in July. The launch price was not disclosed at the event. Regarding speculation that the YU7's price would be 199,000 yuan (about 38.12 million KRW), Lei Jun firmly denied it, saying, "That will never happen. It is impossible," and clarified, "There is absolutely no possibility that it will be sold for less than 300,000 yuan (about 57.46 million KRW)."
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