WUHAN, Oct. 28 (Xinhua) -- Chinese tech firm Xiaomi launched its first smart home appliance factory in Wuhan, central China's Hubei Province, on Tuesday, marking a major expansion of the tech giant's manufacturing footprint beyond smartphones and vehicles.

This new factory, focusing on air conditioner production, is the company's third large-scale smart factory after its auto and smartphone plants.

Spanning over 750 mu (50 hectares) in its first phase with a total planned investment of over 2.5 billion yuan (about 352.83 million U.S. dollars), the facility integrates advanced technologies, including Digital Twin, AI visual inspection and aerial logistics systems. This enables comprehensive visualization and data-driven management across the entire production process.

The factory can roll out a high-end air conditioner every 6.5 seconds, according to Shan Lianyu, general manager of Xiaomi's home appliance department.

Peak annual production capacity for air conditioners is projected to reach 7 million units, with an estimated annual output value of 14 billion yuan, Shan said.

The factory's launch comes amid robust growth in China's smart home appliance sector. A recent industry report indicated that the market size of the country's smart home appliances reached about 756 billion yuan in 2024, a year-on-year increase of 3 percent, and is expected to hit 793.8 billion yuan this year.

Meanwhile, China's export of home appliances saw an increase of 14.8 percent year on year in 2024, reaching 128.64 billion U.S. dollars, according to China Chamber of Commerce for Import and Export of Machinery and Electronic Products.