Sources: Xiaomi prepares a self-designed chip for its smartphones, to reduce its reliance on Qualcomm and MediaTek, with mass production set to begin in 2025
- Chinese firm is said to use in-house chips on 2025 phones — Xiaomi's smartphone, EV businesses needs steady chip supply
Context & Ripple Effects
Xiaomi had explored a smartphone processor as early as 2017; this report indicates that effort is moving toward volume deployment rather than remaining a one-off product initiative.
The move matters because Xiaomi’s handset and EV ambitions both depend on dependable component access. Its later disclosed multibillion-dollar Xring design commitment underscores the scale of the longer-term effort.
First-order effects
- Xiaomi gains a prospective second source for smartphone silicon, reducing the share of its phone roadmap tied directly to Qualcomm and MediaTek supply and product cycles.
- Qualcomm and MediaTek face a potential loss of chipset volume at Xiaomi if the in-house part reaches mass production and is adopted across more models.
Second-order effects
- Xiaomi can tune hardware and software around its own chip roadmap, while retaining external suppliers where its design does not fit a device tier or performance need.
- The two incumbent vendors may need to compete harder for Xiaomi designs on product fit and commercial terms; Xiaomi’s later use of Qualcomm’s flagship platform in its 17 series shows in-house silicon need not mean an immediate full break. Xiaomi’s Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 5 adoption
Third-order effects
- If Xiaomi sustains internal chip development, smartphone makers with sufficient scale may treat custom silicon as a supply-resilience and differentiation tool, not solely a cost-saving exercise.
- This is likely to produce hybrid sourcing rather than universal vertical integration: custom chips require sustained design investment and still depend on broader manufacturing and component supply chains.
The trend: Large device makers are building selective in-house silicon capabilities to diversify supplier dependence while preserving external chips for parts of their portfolios.