Xiaomi, the world’s fourth largest smartphone supplier, launched a new medium-to-high-end model on Wednesday, naming an 18 year old Chinese singer and actor as brand ambassador in a move to shore up slipping sales in the hypercompetitive domestic market. The Mi 9, priced from 2,999 yuan (US$444) is the company’s first smartphone to be launched since it turned its budget Redmi line into an independent brand last month, a move that has enabled it to pursue the high-end segment of the smartphone market. “We set the price after a heated internal discussion. The original price we thought of was 3,299 yuan,” Lei Jun, the chairman and chief executive of Xiaomi, said at a press conference on Wednesday. “I had sleepless nights over the past few days before coming to that decision.” A version with a see-through back is priced from 3,999 yuan. In India last year, where Xiaomi unseated Samsung Electronics from top spot in the country’s smartphone market, the Chinese company created a sub-brand called Poco to target the premium sector. Xiaomi has 29 per cent of the market in India, the world’s second largest smartphone market, according to a recent report by IDC. During Wednesday’s product launch, Lei also announced an exclusive collaboration with popular Chinese short video app Douyin, allowing Mi 9 users to optimise videos with filters and its super-wide panoramic camera. While Xiaomi is the leader in India, its smartphone sales in the highly competitive mainland Chinese market declined by more than 34 per cent in the fourth quarter ended December, according to IDC. Chinese smartphone brands strengthen grip on India Xiaomi’s move to name Wang Yuan, the 18-year-old Chinese singer and actor, comes after its rival Huawei Technologies hired TFBoys band member Yiyang Qianxi as ambassador for its Nova product line, and Oppo named TFBoys leader Wang Junkai as one of its brand ambassadors. To cope with the saturated smartphone market at home, Xiaomi created a new China team in December to “enhance investment in the China market”. Although Xiaomi did not immediately respond to a request asking about the endorsement fee paid to Wang, the expense may pay off as some of the performer’s fans said they would be willing to buy the Xiaomi brand when they need a new phone. “I’ll buy whatever product Wang Yuan endorses,” said a 28-year old fan surnamed Chen. Another fan, who was holding a photo of Wang, agreed with that sentiment. Regarding the price of the Mi 9, Lei said at the end of the press conference that this might be the last time a Xiaomi flagship smartphone is priced under 3,000 yuan. On Tuesday, Lei revealed his ambition to travel into outer space during an talk on artificial intelligence with US film director James Cameron, who was in China to promote his latest film Alita: Battle Angel . “Of course I want to [explore outer space],” Lei wrote in a blog post after the talk. “Some of my friends have already set up satellite and rocket companies, and I want to participate in the cause to march into outer space.”