Xiaomi 17 Launch: Chip Strategy and Car Plans Unveiled

On September 25th, Xiaomi Group (01810.HK) Chairman and CEO Lei Jun delivered his sixth annual speech, sharing the story behind Xiaomi's Xuanjie chip and the company's foray into car manufacturing. He also officially announced the launch of the Xiaomi 17 series smartphones.

Xiaomi 17: Redefining Compact Flagships

The launch of the Xiaomi 17 series has rewritten the concept of a "lightweight and slim flagship" in the industry's memory. The Xiaomi 17 is considered the most powerful small-size, all-around flagship in Xiaomi's history. It boasts a comfortable grip with its 6.3-inch body and ultra-thin 1.18mm screen bezels, achieving an almost symmetrical design on all sides.

Powerful Performance and Innovative Cooling

Beyond its appealing aesthetics, it is also the first phone to feature Qualcomm's latest Snapdragon 8 Gen 5 Supreme Edition chip, touted as the world's fastest mobile SoC, delivering an ultra-high frequency of 4.6GHz. Paired with Xiaomi's exclusive 3D ring-shaped cold pump cooling system, it ensures sustained high performance even within its compact form factor.

Long-lasting Battery and Fast Charging

The battery packs a generous 7000mAh capacity, coupled with support for 100W wired and 50W wireless fast charging, reconciling the seemingly contradictory demands of "small size" and "long battery life." Furthermore, it is equipped with a Leica triple-camera setup, premium coating, and IP69-rated water and dust resistance.

Lei Jun announced that the Xiaomi 17 starts at a price of 4499 yuan. Earlier that day, he stated that more features would be offered for the same price.

Xiaomi's Chip and Automotive Strategies

In his sixth annual speech, Lei Jun addressed external doubts about Xiaomi and elaborated on the company's chip and automotive strategies. He noted that many believe Xiaomi has achieved great success, but he "feels an unspeakable anxiety." He spoke about online criticisms and attacks, pointing out that many people hold preconceived biases against Xiaomi, often seeing statements such as "Xiaomi is just an assembly factory, it doesn't have much technology, it only does marketing, and it certainly won't go far."

Regarding the chip strategy, Lei Jun emphasized that chips are Xiaomi's inevitable path to success, and the development of its own mobile SoC must continue for at least ten years with an investment of no less than 50 billion yuan. He pointed out that the starting point for Songguo was wrong, and that developing its own mobile SoC for the mid-to-low end "has no chance at all," and that starting from the highest end is the only way to survive. He added, "After research, we discovered that Apple and Huawei both started from the highest end, and no mobile phone company started developing its own SoC from the low end. Therefore, we fully realized that Songguo's starting point was wrong, and the direction was wrong."

Lei Jun emphasized that failure is not scary, and the key is to face inner fear.

As for the automotive business, he said that Xiaomi has been able to achieve results in a short period of time because it has gathered a large group of engineers who are passionate about cars and ambitious, and hopes to achieve "great things" on the Xiaomi platform. Regarding the positioning of the YU7, he said that the project started with the mission of a "trump card," "If the SU7 is not successful, the YU7 is our last trump card, and it must bear the mission of saving Xiaomi Motors."

He recalled the SU7 Ultra's Nürburgring certification process, where Xiaomi sent 21 emails to Nürburgring officials, and at the first meeting they were asked "Why is a Chinese phone company coming to the Nürburgring?" They eventually earned the opportunity with their ambition. He said that he will continue to watch the official Nürburgring track certification video repeatedly, "I have watched it at least ten times, and my heart still beats fast and I am filled with excitement."

He also mentioned his views on other car models, believing that the Model Y is a good car, "If you don't choose the YU7, you can choose the Model Y. Of course, other domestic cars are also good, and the Ideal i6 will be released tomorrow, and you can also consider the Ideal i6," while "praising" the product orientation of the Ideal L9.