Android developer takes job with Xiaomi

A Google vice president in charge of product management for the Android operating system said he was taking a job at China's smartphone maker Xiaomi Global. Hugo Barra, the executive, said in a note posted online that he was pursuing "a new career chapter." His job at Xiaomi will be to "help them expand their incredible product portfolio and business globally," Barra said. He also said he was "particularly excited about the opportunity to continue to help drive the Android ecosystem," which implies he is not leaving Google completely behind. PCMMag.com reported Thursday that Barra was the latest of recent key departures from the Android team. In March, the company merged the operations of Google and Chrome, which displaced Andy Rubin as the head of Android. The task of leading Google and Chrome was assigned to Sundar Pichai. Smartphone maker Xiaomi has made it its mission to emulate U.S. technology giant Apple, The New York Times said in an article in 2012. "Xiaomi's marketing strategy has been to ride on the back of the 'cult of Apple" and of its creator [Steve Jobs]," the Times reported. The company launched its first smartphone in September 2011 and has said sales reached 7 million by the end of 2012, PCMag.com reported.