Xiaomi confirms MIUI's demise for the Chinese market

Released with the version number 0.8.16 on August 16, 2010, Xiaomi's MIUI alternative mobile operating system is now available in roughly 80 languages and version 15 will mark a split in the brand's ecosystem. Xiaomi devices running MIUI 13 and MIUI 14 now have access to different features depending on the region, and Chinese users get more than those in other markets. Starting with MIUI 15, Chinese users will get HyperOS, and other markets will stay with MIUI.

Yesterday, Xiaomi Group's PR manager Wang Hua turned to Weibo to share a few thoughts and facts regarding Xiaomi's software environment. Since many Xiaomi fans have been wondering why the brand's mobile operating system isn't called MiOS or MIOS, Hua made it clear that such a thing is not possible due to the fact that Apple trademarked the "iOS" name and anything in the tech world that's similar would lead to a losing legal battle for any third party. A name like MIUIOS would most likely lead to the same outcome.

Right now, the official Xiaomi server shows multiple references to internal test builds of MIUI 15. The Android 14-based ROM is being tested on multiple recent handsets such as the 13 series. While HyperOS is now official, the Pengpai name that was also registered by Xiaomi recently could be used for another branch of its operating system, such as one for smart home devices or the Poco/Redmi handsets.

Considering all the above, we need to wait for the official MIUI 15 release to get a final confirmation of the fact that the MIUI name will no longer be used in China. At the same time, it wouldn't be surprising to see a few other markets receive a localized HyperOS version (Russia, for example).

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