Midway through April, reports from several Asian media outlets began highlighting Xiaomi’s formation of a new internal division believed to be focused on chipset development. The newly identified group, referred to in some circles as the “chip platform department,” appears to be operating within the broader mobile division of the Chinese technology company. According to industry sources, the team has been working on custom chipsets under the codename “Xuanjie,” and its ranks are reportedly strengthened by the involvement of a former Qualcomm marketing director.
More recently, Jukanlosreve—a known observer of the semiconductor and mobile SoC landscape—shared additional insights on the development. While the new information aligns with some of the earlier claims, it also introduces fresh details about the nature and scale of the initiative.
According to Jukanlosreve, the effort around Xiaomi’s chipset development may have been underway for longer than initially assumed. He pointed out that the group, which he refers to as “Xring SoC,” is structured as a separate entity from Xiaomi’s main operations. Described as a full-fledged company with more than 1,000 employees, the Xring unit appears to be well-resourced, suggesting that Xiaomi is taking this effort seriously.
In his commentary, Jukanlosreve stated, “It operates as a new company, independent of the original parent firm. It’s not a small team either—it has over 1000 people.” He added that such an investment in domestic chip development could influence other firms and improve talent mobility within China’s semiconductor sector.
While it’s not clear whether the often-referenced “problematic” in-house design from earlier efforts was part of the Xring project, there is increasing evidence that Xiaomi is intent on building its own proprietary hardware platforms. The company previously made a push into chip design in 2017, but the results were not well received, and efforts appeared to stall afterward.
Jukanlosreve also claimed to have seen an early version of a Xiaomi-designed chipset platform as recently as March 2025. He described it as nearly identical to what he believes will be the final version, although access to the software environment required internal credentials, indicating the prototype was still in testing.
He also touched on the broader economic environment, noting that cost control and efficiency have dominated strategy across the tech industry in recent years. Against this backdrop, Xiaomi’s renewed push into semiconductors stands out, especially given its willingness to invest heavily in what is typically a long-term and capital-intensive endeavor.
There is also continued industry curiosity about how Xiaomi maintains access to advanced manufacturing capabilities, particularly modern TSMC process nodes, given the increasing restrictions and geopolitical considerations surrounding semiconductor production.
For now, the Xring SoC division remains somewhat under the radar, but with growing headcounts, reported internal testing, and significant backing, the project may represent Xiaomi’s most serious attempt yet to reduce reliance on third-party chipmakers. If successful, it could set the stage for more widespread adoption of in-house silicon across Xiaomi’s mobile portfolio in the future.
Sources: Jukanlosreve, Wccftech
