Google has lost another key member of its Android team. Hugo Barra, vice president of product management for Android, will leave the search giant to join Chinese mobile firm Xiaomi.
In a note posted to Google+, Barra said he wanted to "start a new career chapter." At Xiaomi, he will serve as vice president of Xiaomi Global, where he will "help them expand their incredible product portfolio and business globally."
Barra will not be leaving Android behind completely. He said he is "particularly excited about the opportunity to continue to help drive the Android ecosystem."
Barra's departure comes shortly after he took the stage to introduce the new Nexus 7 tablet, and several months after he chatted up developers at the firm's annual I/O conference. He joined Google about 5.5 years ago and has been working on Android for almost three years.
The Android team has been in flux this year. Back in March, the firm combined the Google and Chrome teams, removing Andy Rubin as head of Android and giving control of both teams to Sundar Pichai.
Today, Barra thanked Rubin and Pichai – as well as engineering vice president Hiroshi Lockheimer and engineering senior vice president Vic Gundotra – for "an amazing ride," as well as their "phenomenal support and mentorship over the years."
As for where Barra's headed, the New York Times noted last year, Xiaomi's first smartphone only hit the market in Sept. 2011, but it was poised to reach 7 million in sales by the end of 2012. The firm's CEO, Lei Jun, appears to mimic Steve Jobs – down the signature ensemble. "Xiaomi's marketing strategy has been to ride on the back of the 'cult of Apple' and of its creator," the paper said.
Xiaomi president and co-founder Bin Lin confirmed that Barra will join the company in a post on Chinese social network Sina Weibo. Lin previously worked at Google as an engineering director from 2006 to 2010.