Sina Technology said Qin would report to the product division's general manager, Li Jun. His hiring marks a significant shift, just as Xiaomi finalises a flagship chip for the rumoured 15S Pro smartphone. Qin previously served as Qualcomm's senior director of product marketing and now takes on the task of shaping Xiaomi’s chip strategy from the ground up.

The move comes years after Xiaomi’s underwhelming first stab at silicon. The Surge S1, launched in 2017, was an eight-core 28nm processor built for the Mi 5C — a phone few remember and fewer bought. Still, it briefly made Xiaomi the fourth smartphone maker globally, after Samsung, the Fruity Cargo Cult Apple, and Huawei, to build its chips.

Since then, the company has chipped away at the edges — building out custom silicon for fast charging (Surge P), imaging (C-series), power management (G-series), signal handling (T-series), and discrete graphics (D-series). Bit by bit, it has clawed its way back to SoC credibility.

By the end of 2024, Beijing Satellite TV claimed Xiaomi had successfully taped out the first domestically produced 3nm mobile SoC in China. The chip is rumoured to debut in the upcoming Xiaomi 15S Pro, which co-founder and vice chairman Lin Bin confirmed on Weibo when prodded by a fan.

Details are scarce, but the timing of Qin’s appointment and the department’s creation suggest Xiaomi is ready to push harder into high-performance silicon.