As it navigates a new era of icy Washington-Beijing relations, iPhone maker Foxconn is betting big on electric cars and redrawing some of its supply chains.
iPhone maker Foxconn
Chairman and CEO Young Liu told in an exclusive interview what the future may hold for the Taiwanese company.
Even as Foxconn shifts some supply chains away from China, he believes electric vehicles (EVs) will drive the company’s growth in the coming decades. Mr Liu stated that as US-China tensions rise, Foxconn must brace for the worst.
“We hope that the leaders of these two countries will keep peace and stability in mind,” Mr Liu, 67, told us in his office in Taipei, Taiwan’s capital.
“But as a business, as a CEO, I have to think about what if the worst case happens?”
Possible scenarios include Beijing attempting to blockade Taiwan, which it claims as part of China, or worse, invading the self-ruled island.
Mr Liu stated that “business continuity planning” was already underway, and that some production lines, particularly those associated with “national security products,” were already being relocated from China to Mexico and Vietnam.
He was most likely referring to Foxconn servers, which are used in data centers and can contain sensitive information.
Foxconn, or Hon Hai Technology Group as it is officially known, began in 1974, manufacturing knobs for televisions.
With an annual revenue of $200 billion (£158.2 billion), it is now one of the world’s most powerful technology companies.
It is best known for producing more than half of Apple’s products, from iPhones to iMacs, but it also works with Microsoft, Sony, Dell, and Amazon.
To read our blog on “Sales of smart gadgets increased in April 2023, Foxconn,” click here