Multiple independent sources confirmed on August 9 that Kong Tao, former head of ByteDance's robotics team, has joined Xiaomi and now serves as the head of the company's robotics foundation model team. Several informed individuals revealed that Kong Tao joined Xiaomi in the summer of 2025, bringing along some former ByteDance employees.

Xiaomi's robotics division has newly established an Embodied Intelligence and Applications Department, which is led by Kong Tao. All business directions within the embodied intelligence track are now under his jurisdiction. According to internal information, at a recent internal meeting, the boss gave Kong Tao a rating of "far exceeding expectations."

After joining Xiaomi Robotics, Kong Tao held one-on-one, in-depth discussions with many employees, aiming to assess the overall competitive level of Xiaomi's robotics team within the industry. Currently, Xiaomi's robotics division has approximately 200 people.

Earlier this year, Xiaomi's robot began an "internship" at the self-tapping nut workstation at Xiaomi's automotive factory. In March, it achieved a bilateral installation success rate of 90.2% for three consecutive hours of autonomous operation. By July, the success rate had improved to 98%, only 1% lower than manual operation, and it has officially been "hired" for formal work.

According to insiders close to Xiaomi Robotics, the foundation model team led by Kong Tao has a separate office, and the entire Xiaomi robotics division is operating under a high level of internal confidentiality. This article is based on publicly available information and does not constitute investment advice.