Xiaomi, the little-known Chinese Startup has risen to become the third largest smartphone manufacturer, now wants to be the number one.

Since this involves showing huge companies like Apple and Samsung the error of their ways, this could be jolly interesting.

Xiaomi CEO Lei Jun told an internet conference in China that the outfit has more than 70 million active users. Adding to this, Jun advises that Xiaomi expects this number to be around the 200 million marker by next year. Effectively tripling in the next 12 months. Jun used this basis to make the bold claim that in as little as the next 5-10 years, Xiaomi could rise to become the biggest smartphone maker in the world.

Of course, the Tame Apple Press thinks that is impossible as only Apple can be number one, but if you step outside the Jobs’ Mob reality distortion field, you have to admit that it is very possible.

Xiaomi has recently entered six new markets including India, Indonesia, Hong Kong, Taiwan, Malaysia and Singapore. Growth in these territories will certainly help to increase the already rising Xiaomi presence.

Its growth might be slowed as the other companies start to call in favours with their political mates, or have a crack at patent trolling, but it might actually do it. The reason is that Xiaomi’s success its cheap hardware. When we say cheap, some of the top of the range models are as good as Apple’s only they do not charge as much. But that is not the main thing – it does well because it’s hardware is centred on a popular social network. It was something that was foreshadowed in Apple’s walled garden of delights, but never totally managed.

Xiaomi will only mirror the same success it has enjoyed in China if it can set up a similar operation in the US and EU. That, more than anything will cause it to grind to a halt. To set up its social network style operation it will have to take on some deeply entrenched operations like Facebook, as well as its normal technology rivals. Still it will be interesting to see if it can pull it off.