Xiaomi India is gearing up for its biggest product year yet. In an exclusive conversation with Gadgets 360, Xiaomi India COO Sudhin Mathur looked back at 2025 and laid out the roadmap for early 2026 — including the next Redmi Note smartphone, a broader AI-driven feature rollout, and a major IoT ecosystem expansion.
Despite a market slowdown in smartphone shipment volume, Xiaomi has held strong. According to IDC’s latest report, the brand remains India’s third-largest smartphone company with over 13% market share, while it also holds the third spot in the tablet category.
A Major Strategy Shift: From “Value for Money” to “Value for Experience”
Mathur confirmed that 2025 marked an intentional recalibration of Xiaomi’s India strategy.
“The market and consumers are changing. For years we were known for value-for-money, and now it’s shifting to value-for-experience,” he said.
With average selling prices (ASP) rising in India and consumers prioritising experience over just affordability, Xiaomi now aims to reinforce its presence as a full ecosystem brand, not only a smartphone label.
Mathur emphasized Xiaomi’s focus areas going into 2026:
- Delivering premium experiences across categories
- Strengthening three distinct sub-brands: Xiaomi, Redmi, and Poco
- Continuing the core philosophy of “innovation for all”
Next Redmi Note Coming Early 2026 With Big Promises
The Redmi Note lineup has historically been Xiaomi’s biggest volume driver in India. Mathur confirmed that the next major entry likely the Redmi Note 15 series is arriving early in 2026.
Key highlights consumers can expect:
- Four years of OS updates
- Six years of security patches
- Major upgrades based on past consumer feedback
“The pain points of previous Redmi Note users have been addressed in the upcoming series,” Mathur assured.
The Redmi Note experience will continue to focus on camera excellence, battery efficiency, display brightness, and reliable after-sales service.
Xiaomi has also completed its shift to an omnichannel retail strategy, meaning:
Same phone. Same price. Same experience regardless of where customers choose to buy.
AI Is Coming to the Mid-Range — Not Just the Flagship Class
AI will be a major theme for 2026 particularly in the Redmi Note series.
While much of smartphone AI today revolves around photography and filters, Mathur said Xiaomi intends to move far beyond those basics.
“Xiaomi is going to lead in the mid category. The learnings from our premium products are now coming to Redmi Note to deliver great experiences at excellent value.”
AI will play a key role in enhancing usability, personalization, and device longevity, signalling a bigger AI leap for mid-range phones.
IoT: Xiaomi to Expand Beyond Smartphones in 2026
While 2025 saw Xiaomi focus mostly on phones, tablets, and TVs, 2026 will bring renewed momentum across its IoT segment.
Mathur said:
“Phones remain our core business, but our non-phone business — TVs, tablets, IoT devices — is where we plan to double down.”
However, he acknowledged that recent QCO/BIS regulatory requirements have slowed down product introductions temporarily.
Xiaomi’s goal for 2026:
- Build consumer awareness that Xiaomi is not just a phone brand, but an entire connected ecosystem.
What’s Next?
With only weeks left before 2026, the next Redmi Note launch is not far away and it is positioned to play a central role in Xiaomi’s renewed strategy for India.
Stay tuned for updates on:
- Full Redmi Note 2026 specifications and variants
- AI-driven feature announcements
- IoT products and ecosystem rollout