Inside the XRING O3: What Xiaomi Built
Xiaomi unveiled the XRING O3 on August 24, 2026, its second-generation in-house mobile chip, built on TSMC's 3nm manufacturing process and packing 24 billion transistors.
The chip runs a 10-core CPU with a peak clock speed of 4.35 GHz, paired with a new 16-core GPU that Xiaomi calls the G2-Ultra NX. Xiaomi said the GPU delivers roughly 85 percent higher performance than its predecessor while consuming 64 percent less power, and the full chip gains about 60 percent higher multi-core performance alongside reduced power draw. Xiaomi also introduced two related chips the same day, the O100 and D100, aimed at AI applications and smart devices, positioning the O3 as the flagship of a broader in-house chip family.
The Benchmark Numbers, Compared
On AnTuTu, the industry's most widely cited mobile benchmark, the XRING O3 scored 5.22 million points, becoming the first mobile chip of any brand to break the 5-million mark. That score sits alongside the chip's other headline figures: 24 billion transistors on a 3nm process, a 10-core CPU topping out at 4.35 GHz, and a 16-core GPU claiming an 85 percent performance gain over the prior generation.
| Spec | XRING O3 |
|---|---|
| Process | TSMC 3nm |
| Transistors | 24 billion |
| CPU | 10-core, 4.35 GHz peak |
| GPU | 16-core G2-Ultra NX |
| AnTuTu score | 5.22 million |
| Initial production | 200,000-300,000 units |
A single benchmark score does not capture efficiency, sustained thermal performance, or real-world app behavior; it is nonetheless the number every competitor will now be measured against.
Where the Chip Ships First
The XRING O3 debuts in the Xiaomi 18 Fold, a foldable smartphone launching in September 2026.
Xiaomi has set initial production between 200,000 and 300,000 units, a volume that treats the launch device as a controlled rollout rather than a mass-market flagship push. The O3 follows Xiaomi's first-generation Xring O1 chip, introduced roughly a year earlier, marking the second step in a silicon program still finding its production footing.
The Supply-Chain Read for European Buyers
A smartphone brand designing a chip that tops the open benchmark charts is a supply-chain story before it is a performance story. Xiaomi is now the latest major vendor, after Apple, Samsung, and Google before it, to internalize silicon design rather than buy it off the shelf from Qualcomm or MediaTek.
Every vendor that makes this move reduces its exposure to a single chip supplier's pricing and roadmap, but it also takes on years of chip research and development risk that cannot easily be walked back once committed.
For a European buyer or IT fleet manager evaluating Xiaomi devices, the honest read favors caution over comfort in the near term. An in-house chip reduces Xiaomi's long-run exposure to Qualcomm price and allocation swings that have squeezed the industry; today, though, the O3 is still a first-generation-adjacent chip backed by a production run of just 200,000 to 300,000 units, a supply chain of its own that is smaller and less proven than the Qualcomm pipeline it partly replaces. Xiaomi sells in volume across Europe and the UK, so buyers should treat the O3 launch as evidence of where Xiaomi's roadmap is heading, not as proof that its chip supply is already stable.
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