Xiaomi lists premiumisation, AIoT, omnichannel push as India priorities
smartphone company Xiaomi is kicking off 2024 with a three-year strategy to become India’s most preferred smartphone plus AIoT (artificial intelligence of things) brand, having regained some of the lost foothold in 2023, a top executive said on Wednesday.
“With the reset, recharge, refresh strategy and Xiaomi getting its mojo back (in 2023), we now have a three-year gameplan to play with, wherein we want to be the aspirational Indian’s most preferred and pioneering smartphone x AIoT brand,” Xiaomi India president Muralikrishnan B told reporters.
Premiumisation, fostering an integrated smartphone x AIoT experience for users, and synergising the omnichannel sales strategy will be the key pillars of the plan, he said.
“In 2024, the smartphone market in India will grow in a single-digit percentage, largely driven by 5G, and we’d like to be at the forefront of it,” Muralikrishnan said. “Over three years, definitely we would want to have a substantial share of the premium segment.”
The positive outlook on spending by the middle class in the coming years will also boost the smartphone market going forward, he added.
At the same time, the company will be open to leveraging its R&D investments in generative AI “as and when chipsets develop new capabilities”, though it will be up to application makers to get the best out of it, Muralikrishnan said.
Chinese smartphone makers, bogged down by government scrutiny and competition in the market from major rivals such as Samsung, Vivo, Oppo and Apple, are looking to regain their once-dominant market shares in India.
