Xiaomi loses trump card, Hugo Barra announces exit

Global Vice President for Chinese tech giant Hugo Barra has announced his exit from the company this morning. Hugo took to Facebook to announce his exit where he shared his experience of 3.5 years with the Chinese tech giant.

Xiaomi came to the Indian market in July 2014 and has been seeing a constant rise, beyond expectations. Hugo Barra was the star for Xiaomi where he gathered a huge fan following that helped the Chinese giant take a huge stand on the global stage. Hugo said on his Facebook post that he will be ‘transitioning’ out of his role in February and will continue to be an advisory to the company. He will be parting the Chinese company to take a ‘much-needed time off’ before heading on for a new adventure in Silicon Valley.

Bin Lin, the co-founder and president of Xiaomi replied in Barra’s post that Hugo will now be an advisor to the company and Xiaomi senior vice president Xiang Wang will now lead the entire global efforts in future.

Hugo gives out his explanation for leaving China as staying miles away from his comfort zone and working with in China (at Xiaomi) has taken a huge toll on his health and personal life because of the ‘singular environment’ he lived in. He said his life is in Silicon Valley, where he will start a new team with a bigger startup.

Hugo was the face of Xiaomi outside the home country. The brand grew big with Hugo taking the Chinese giant to the global launch platforms such as the MWC and CES. Hugo has a lot of fan following, both personally and professionally. He drew a huge attention and was a star performer both on stage and off.

Here is the open letter to his fans Hugo posted on Facebook.

“THANKS FOR A GREAT 3.5 YEARS, MI FANS — When Lei Jun and Bin Lin came to me nearly four years ago with the opportunity to help turn a young rockstar startup into a global player, I embarked on what has been the greatest and most challenging adventure of my life. I moved to Beijing, 6,500 miles out of my comfort zone in Silicon Valley, to build from scratch a startup team within a bigger startup. This journey has been nothing short of spectacular in every way, and I can proudly say that Xiaomi Global is the first baby I helped bring into the world :)

But what I've realized is that the last few years of living in such a singular environment have taken a huge toll on my life and started affecting my health. My friends, what I consider to be my home, and my life are back in Silicon Valley, which is also much closer to my family. Seeing how much I've left behind these past few years, it is clear to me that the time has come to return.

As I thought about this late last year, I concluded that Xiaomi is in a very good place on its global expansion path, and if there was ever going to be a good time for me to come back home, that time is now — when I can confidently say our global business is no longer just an in-house startup. We turned India from a dream into Xiaomi’s largest international market with $1 billion in annual revenues, faster than any company in India's history. We expanded into Indonesia, Singapore, Malaysia, and more recently 20 other markets including Russia, Mexico, and Poland. We teamed up with Google to launch our first official product in the US, and with our successful debut at CES 2017 — where we won 3 prestigious awards — the world now sees that Xiaomi is a global player changing the tech industry through our simple promise of bringing innovation to everyone.

More importantly, we now have a team of some of the most remarkable and enthusiastic people I have ever worked with, and leaving them all behind is without doubt the most difficult part of stepping away. At the same time, I know I’ll be leaving them in very good hands. Xiaomi now has a strong, globally-minded executive team who will continue to drive the momentum we began together.

I want to thank the Xiaomi founders, and particularly our CEO Lei Jun, who has been a mentor and a friend. It has been both humbling and uplifting to work with a man whose vision is redefining the role technology plays in all of our lives, and the role the China tech industry plays in the world. As a friend and shareholder of the company, I am honored that he has been very supportive of my transition and has asked me to remain an advisor to Xiaomi indefinitely, as we continue to extend our reach around the world.

For me, as for many people in China, the Spring Festival brings new beginnings, and I will be transitioning out of my role at Xiaomi in February after Chinese New Year. I will take some much-needed time off before embarking on a new adventure back in Silicon Valley.

To my Xiaomi colleagues in China and India: as I leave our home in Beijing and Bangalore, please be assured that I will remain your loyal and grateful Mi fan 虎å"¥. I will be watching diligently from the sidelines and rooting for you guys all the way! And, of course, a very special shout-out to all our Mi fans around the world, who have won my heart for life!

Stay in touch guys :)

I'll be seeing you,

Hugo”