Foxconn Wants To Make Teslas Just Like They Make IPhones, Too
Smartphone-maker Foxconn is already a tech juggernaut and now it may have its sights on contract-building cars for automakers such as Tesla and others.
One of the world’s biggest tech hardware makers said it’s not satisfied making nearly one out of every two smartphones in the world. It’s now looking at making cars, too.
Executives from Taiwanese giant Foxconn told investors Tuesday that it’s aiming to make electric cars at the same clip as their phones.
“I hope one day we can do Tesla cars for Tesla,” Foxconn Chairman Liu Young-way said, according to Reuters.
The Foxconn chief added the company isn't interested in selling EVs under its own moniker, but rather as a contractor for other automakers. It has manufacturing facilities in Taiwan and Thailand already, and it purchased the Lordstown, Ohio, auto plant in May after that factory was shuttered first by General Motors and then floated by Lordstown Motors.
Foxconn is the contracted builder for the Lordstown Endurance pickup and the company announced this year it would be the contracted builder for the Fisker PEAR EV in Ohio. The company also has a deal with Indian manufacturer Vendanta to build EVs as well.
Liu said the company would apply its institutional knowledge of manufacturing semiconductors and smartphones to EV building, aiming to speed up production, design, and research for EVs.
Foxconn has already rolled out several prototypes of potential vehicles that it could build for others, including a pickup truck. Last year, the company showed off a sedan, crossover, and city bus, and this year it unveiled a small crossover and Model V electric pickup.
“Our heartfelt hope is that Taiwan can seize this once-in-a-hundred years, rare EV business opportunity,” Liu said, according to Reuters.
Contract manufacturing isn’t new to the auto business, nor especially rare. Canadian company Manga International builds vehicles for Mercedes-Benz, BMW, Jaguar, and Toyota. Finnish company Valmet Automotive contract builds for Mercedes-Benz and has assembled vehicles for Porsche and Fisker.
Of course, neither jumped into the automotive sector from the tech space. Foxconn’s already-deep pockets and established manufacturing facilities across the globe make them an ideal partner for many startup automakers including Fisker and, perhaps one day, Apple.
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