Since 2010, Xiaomi and its MIUI Android interface have been inseparable. MIUI has steadily grown to encompass a global user base of more than 564 million monthly active users, with the most recent iteration, MIUI 14, being unveiled last December.
However, it appears that Xiaomi is contemplating a significant shift in its custom interface for the next release, as credible insider ‘Digital Chat Station’ confidently predicts that Xiaomi will replace MIUI with an entirely new operating system, MiOS.
The precise nature of MiOS is still shrouded in uncertainty. It remains to be seen whether MiOS will function as another Android overlay user interface akin to MIUI or if Xiaomi is in fact developing an entirely new mobile operating system.
Earlier speculations have hinted at Xiaomi’s intention to follow in the footsteps of Huawei by launching its own Android Open Source Project (AOSP)-based operating system, intended for deployment across its smartphones, tablets, wearables, and even its electric vehicles.
Even if it is going to be a different OS, it will most likely be heavily inspired by the already existing and long-standing MIUI. It is highly unlikely that Xiaomi is simply going to discard what they’ve worked on for over a decade in favor of something new.
This rebranding may be similar to what Xiaomi did with the “Mi” moniker on its older phones. The company dropped the “Mi” from its phones a while ago, so now their phones are simply called “Xiaomi 14”, instead of “Xiaomi Mi 14”.
In any case, we will keep you updated as soon as more information surfaces. Xiaomi has already secured the MiOS name through trademark registration and obtained the domain mios.cn in China. Furthermore, there have been numerous reports within Chinese media about the existence of a MiOS developer beta.