“ A KEY FACTOR TO XIAOMI ’ S SMARTPHONE SUCCESS IS THE HUGE FOCUS ON R & D AND INNOVATION ; THEY ARE CONSTANTLY CHALLENGING WHAT ’ S POSSIBLE ”
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From my personal experience , it was Xiaomi ’ s IoT products which first caught my attention and then led me into the wonderful world of Xiaomi smartphones .
Q . Which product / form factor innovations are most excited to see on the horizon ?
» I recently acquired Xiaomi ’ s Mi Mix Fold , which had an exclusive launch in China . I believe that solutions around expandable displays will develop .
In the long-run , foldables will most likely merge into a new category of expandable solutions . From the camera perspective , we just launched the first liquid lens on a smartphone ( Mi Mix Fold ). This lens can act both as a tele lens and wide angle lens depending on what shape it has . A liquid lens technology could potentially replace all multi-lens solutions which are available on a smartphone and take advantage of using the biggest sensor .
I ’ m also excited to see new product categories taking place . Our Electric Vehicle department is planning to launch its first car by 2024 .
Apart from that , Xiaomi ’ s CyberDog was recently introduced in China and had 1000 developer versions sold at launch . The CyberDog is helping to make robotics more accessible to the developer community - who will be instrumental in advancing the use cases .
Q . You recently released a PoC for Xiaomi ' s own smart glasses . What can you tell me about the timeline and capabilities of this device , as well as how you see wearables fitting into Xiaomi ' s strategy over the coming decade ?
» The smartphone as we know it has been around since the mid noughties and the form-factor has remained largely the same . Now , technology has advanced to allow accessories such as smart-glasses to become a reality for a wider audience . This means that the technology could soon cross over from early adopter territory to mainstream adoption .
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