iQoo wants to use AI to deliver meaningful improvements for smartphone users, says iQoo India CEO

iQoo 13

iQoo has unveiled its latest flagship smartphone, the iQoo 13, in India. Priced at ₹54,999, the phone is packed with features, with a special focus on delivering a top-notch gaming experience. In an exclusive interview with Moneycontrol, Nipun Marya, CEO of iQoo India, shares insights into the brand’s gaming-oriented approach, its growth story in the Indian market, and the increasing role of AI in smartphones. Here are some excerpts from the conversation:

iQoo has consistently emphasised gaming in its smartphones. Why has this become a core focus for the brand?

Nipun Marya: Gaming ties in perfectly with iQoo’s core positioning as a performance-first brand. When we launched iQoo around four to five years ago, most smartphone brands were heavily focused on cameras. Cameras are undoubtedly important, but we realised that a sizable section of users prioritise performance. They look for speed, excellent battery life, and the ability to handle intensive tasks seamlessly.

Gaming became the ideal use case to demonstrate what iQoo could do. Features like gaming triggers, which we introduced early on, resonated well with consumers, especially gamers. However, I’d like to emphasise that iQoo isn’t solely about gaming. It’s about delivering performance across the board to cater to a wide range of users.

How has iQoo’s “performance-first” strategy contributed to the brand’s growth in India?

Marya: Building a brand is always a step-by-step process. Over the years, we’ve worked hard to understand how iQoo fits into our consumers’ lives. Our commitment to performance is evident in the feedback we’ve received. For example, last year’s flagship, the iQoo 12, achieved an impressive 4.5-star rating on Amazon. That’s rare for a smartphone, and it speaks to the high expectations users have of our devices.

Furthermore, we’ve fostered a strong community of iQoo users. We launched the iQoo Community about two years ago, and it has grown quite a lot. This community reflects our belief in building a brand that grows from the ground up, starting with the people who use our products.

AI has been a big buzzword in the smartphone industry lately. How does the iQoo 13 leverage AI, and what sets it apart from its competitors?

Marya: AI can be understood in two parts: the flashy features that brands often highlight and the less visible but highly impactful algorithms that enhance the overall user experience.

In the iQoo 13, AI plays a key role in optimising the phone’s performance. For example, it works behind the scenes in the cooling mechanisms, ensuring the phone remains at an optimal speed and temperature even during intensive gaming or multitasking.

Of course, we’ve incorporated the standard AI features that users expect, but we’ve also gone deeper with hardware and software integration. While some AI features might seem like gimmicks, we aim to deliver meaningful enhancements that genuinely improve the way people use their phones.

The iQoo 13’s display has a lot of new features . Can you tell us the idea of enhancing the display performance?

Marya: A phone’s display is the window to its entire experience. Whether you’re gaming, watching videos, or scrolling through photos, a good display can elevate everything. That’s why we’ve introduced the world’s first 2K resolution display with a 144Hz refresh rate on the iQoo 13.

It ensures that every interaction—whether it’s a photo, a game, or a video—looks and feels extraordinary. We wanted to raise the bar for display technology, just as we’ve done for performance.

What are your expectations for the iQoo 13, and how do you think it will resonate with buyers?

Marya: The iQoo 13 builds on the success of our previous flagships, especially the iQoo 12, which solidified our reputation for delivering performance and innovation. With the iQoo 13, we hope to take that a step further. It’s a device that offers something special for gamers, power users, and anyone who values premium performance.