Hugo Barra is leaving Xiaomi in February

Xiaomi's Global VP Hugo Barra, who joined Xiaomi back in August 2013 has announced his resignation from the company and plans to return to Silicon Valley in February. However, Barra said he will continue to be an advisor to Xiaomi.

In a Facebook post, Barra wrote “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.”

Barra cited health reasons for leaving Xiaomi and also mentioned that by going back to Silicon Valley he can stay closer to his family. 一 “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.”

Barra has been face of Xiaomi for the global audience, generally making product-related announcements and presentations, which were mostly captivating. Under Barra's supervision, Xiaomi over the past few years has expanded to more than twenty countries, including India, Hong Kong, Taiwan, Philippines, Indonesia, Malaysia, Middle East, Brazil and North Africa with India turning out to be its largest international market with $1 billion annual sales.

He wrote in the post, “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.”

He also added “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,”

Barra ended his post saying, “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. 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!”

It is not clear what Barra will be doing next at Silicon Valley.