Xiaomi XRING 01 Launch: Groundbreaking In-House Chipset

Xiaomi is preparing to introduce the XRING 01, its inaugural in-house smartphone chipset, later this month. This launch signifies a significant advancement in the company’s long-term goal of minimising reliance on third-party chip manufacturers while enhancing its hardware ecosystem.

Announcement from the CEO

The revelation came from Xiaomi CEO Lei Jun on the Chinese social media platform Weibo. Although he did not provide specific technical details, he confirmed that the XRING 01 will make its debut in China by the end of May 2025. This chipset has been entirely conceived and developed by Xiaomi’s internal semiconductor team.

Technical Insights into XRING 01

As reported by Reuters, individuals familiar with the situation have indicated that the XRING 01 is constructed on ARM architecture and is being produced by Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company (TSMC) using its state-of-the-art 3-nanometre process. This positions the chipset among the most advanced mobile processors available based on manufacturing technologies.

Xiaomi’s Return to Chip Development

Xiaomi’s return to the realm of mobile chip development occurs seven years after the Surge S2 project was ultimately abandoned in favour of Qualcomm’s Snapdragon platform. Since that time, the company has redirected its efforts towards creating other proprietary silicon, including the Surge P series for quick charging, G series for power management, T series for signal enhancement, and D series display processors.

Competing with Industry Giants

The XRING 01 represents Xiaomi’s renewed effort to compete with technological powerhouses such as Apple, Google, Huawei, and Samsung, all of which have effectively incorporated their own chipsets into premium devices. Industry insider Digital Chat Station has suggested that the XRING 01 might be produced using a 5nm process, and early testing has reportedly surpassed expectations, even suggesting the possibility of the chip outperforming the Qualcomm Snapdragon 8 Gen 3 under specific conditions.

A Key Milestone for Xiaomi

The release of the XRING 01 is a vital milestone for Xiaomi’s ambition to create a vertically integrated hardware ecosystem. Analysts have also indicated that this custom silicon could enhance Xiaomi’s expanding electric vehicle (EV) segment by enabling more profound hardware-software optimisation throughout its range of products.

Future of the XRING 01

Xiaomi has yet to announce which smartphone will be the first to incorporate the XRING 01, but further updates are anticipated shortly as the company prepares for the launch at the end of May.