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Xiaomi plans to invest $1 billion in 100 Indian developers over the next five years

CEO Lei Jun outlines the company's plans for the future

Xiaomi plans to invest $1 billion in 100 Indian developers over the next five years

Chinese smartphone manufacturer Xiaomi has revealed plans to invest $1 billion in 100 India-based start-ups over the next five years.

As reported by Live Mint, the company is looking to invest in financial tech, manufacturing, "hyperlocal" services, and content developers. It is hoping that these investments will accelerate mobile internet adoption in India.

Xiaomi is looking to only take minority stakes in local companies, and then work closely with them to develop the business. It hopes that its investments across the industry will lead to a wider adoption of its phones and services in the country.

Replicating China

"In China, in the past four years we've invested $4 billion in over 300 companies. In the next five years, we will invest in 100 companies in India. We will basically replicate the most successful ecosystem business model of China in India," said Xiaomi CEO Lei Jun.

"We will have all types of services and products and integrate them. That is the Xiaomi business model. We focus on a few key things and everything else, we let our partners provide. We've reached just a huge scale in seven years because of this partnership/affiliation model."

Jun had originally said in April 2017 that the company would look to invest $500 million in India over the next five years. Xiaomi's revenues from India are expected to hit $2 billion in 2017.


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