Qi 50W: the wireless standard takes shape as Xiaomi collaborates with Apple, Google, and Huawei

The wireless charging standard Qi 50W has now had its hardware parameters largely defined, with the official release expected in 2028. This is the most tangible outcome from the Off-cycle Meeting of the Wireless Power Consortium (WPC), the body that governs the Qi standard, held from June 22 to 25 at Xiaomi's headquarters in Beijing: it's the first time the meeting has taken place in China.

Over 20 companies from the global supply chain and more than 90 engineers involved in development were present. Notable attendees included Apple, Google, Huawei, Honor, OPPO, Vivo, Anker, NXP, Renesas, Panasonic Automotive Systems, Philips, and Dolby, as well as several semiconductor and component suppliers. The work focused on regulatory text, prototype testing, and verifying interoperability among manufacturers, including a dedicated Plugfest.

Xiaomi as the Standard Promoter

Xiaomi did not just host the event: it is the main promoter of the standard, with an architecture that the company summarizes as "low inductance, low voltage, high power." The company had submitted the formal proposal to the WPC at the end of 2024, then showcased the 25W and 50W demos in 2025 with feasibility verification, completing interoperability among different manufacturers at 50W in the same year. In the first quarter of 2026, the architecture passed the WPC review and entered the official drafting phase of the standard.

The low inductance reduces losses in coil modules and simplifies integration into complex devices like foldables and automotive pads, while the low voltage improves safety, efficiency, and thermal management, reducing overall system complexity.

The Goal of Brand Compatibility

What distinguishes Qi 50W from current systems is its cross-brand compatibility. Several proprietary Chinese systems already exceed 50W, but only when pairing the phone with the same brand charger. The standard aims for high-speed charging usable with third-party chargers and different accessories, dismantling the lock-in of closed systems.

The path is set within a development process that has been ongoing for a few years: Qi 2.0, arrived in 2023 with its 15W and magnetic alignment, became an international IEC standard by the end of 2024; Qi 2.2, marketed as Qi2 25W, was released in 2025.

The question remains as to who will adopt the standard first: the most likely candidates are Google Pixel and iPhone, given their respective devices that have supported Qi2 while a significant part of Android manufacturers has overlooked it. At the moment, this is just a prediction: the hardware parameters are nearly ready, but the release window remains set for 2028.