Xiaomi Corp. reported stronger-than-expected 27% revenue growth for the first quarter as the smartphone maker gears up for a new business strategy focusing on internet of things powered by artificial intelligence (AIoT).

Hong Kong-listed Xiaomi posted 43.8 billion yuan ($6.33 billion) of revenue for the three months ended March 31, up from 34.4 billion yuan a year earlier and beating an average estimate of 42 billion yuan in a survey of analysts by Refinitiv. Revenue from international markets grew 34.7% year-on-year to 16.8 billion in the first quarter.

Adjusted net income for the first quarter rose to 2.1 billion yuan from 1.7 billion yuan a year ago, according to Xiaomi’s unaudited results announced Monday.

“We will continue to focus diligently on our “Smartphone + AIoT” dual-engine strategy and greatly expand the number of devices connected to our platform,” the company said.

Xiaomi’s smartphone business booked 27 billion yuan of revenue in the first quarter, a 16.2% rise from a year ago. Smartphone sales totaled 27.9 million units, the company said.

Despite a slowdown in China’s smartphone market as the economy cools, Xiaomi said it expected supportive government policies to benefit the industry. Beijing-based Xiaomi ranked fourth globally in terms of the volume of smartphone shipments during the first quarter, according to Canalys.

Earlier this year, Xiaomi announced a plan to invest 10 billion yuan in the AIoT sector over the next five years as the company seeks to expand into the booming market for smart homes backed by internet of things (IoT).

As of March 31, the number of connected devices, excluding smartphones and laptops, on Xiaomi’s IoT platform reached 171 million units, a year-on-year increase of 70%, Xiaomi said.

Related: Chart of the Day: Xiaomi CEO’s Peerless Pay Packet