Chinese smartphone maker company Xiaomi, Inc. is leading a $40 million investment, along with other Chinese companies, in Silicon Valley-based wearable and fitness device maker Misfit Wearables Corp.

The other investors include Chinese e-commerce company JD.com, Shunwei Captial Partners and venture capital firm GGV Capital.

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Reports say it's the first time for Xiaomi, the third largest smartphone maker in the world, to invest in a U.S-based wearables company.

Sonny Vu, CEO and co-founder of Misfit, said the latest investment by the Chinese companies will help Misfit expand its reach into mainland China. 

"Xiaomi knows how to scale, they understand supply chains," Vu said. "People like the stuff that we've got, but we need to get more products out, and faster."

Misfit, a company founded in 2011, is known for developing the Misfit Shine, an activity fitness tracking device that works with the company's own app. It lets users measure their activities such as swimming, walking, running and cycling.

The Misfit app works on smartphones that run on the iOS, Android and Windows mobile operating systems. The device costs $99.99 available on the Misfit website.

In addition to its wearables, the Silicon-Valley based company said it also intends to focus on developing new connected smart home devices in the next months. It plans to expand into the smart home market.

"If you actually have to wear something 24/7 to get data, it's kind of a disadvantage. But if you can just buy something that you plug into the wall, and it works, it can really add value." Vu said.

TagsJD.com, Shunwei Capital Partners, GGV Capital, fund, e-commerce, Fitness Device, Activity Tracker, Misfit Shine, Misft App, Chinese Firms, Smart Home Device