Telangana state official has stated that Foxconn's plant near Hyderabad, Telangana has finished construction and will start manufacturing its first batch of hearbles reportedly include Apple's Airpods, as early as August.
News of Foxconn's production first came out in August 2023, when PTI reported that the Taiwan-based manufacturing giant would mass-produce AirPods by the end of 2024 at its facility near Hyderabad, Telangana. Reportedly, it would be Foxconn's first trial to make an audible device for Apple in India after iPhones.
Speedy delivery
In an exclusive interview with DIGITIMES Asia, the visiting special secretary to the Investment Promotion & NRI Affairs of Telangana, Vishnu Reddy says two of Foxconn's factory lines have already finished construction.
The plant took one and a half years to complete, says the special secretary. "That's the speed of execution, that's a major differentiator between the Hyderabad ecosystem and other places that we are competing with, we promise quick delivery," Reddy added.
Reddy claims Foxconn is satisfied by the project's speed as the company's initial estimated timeline was two and a half years. The state official says Foxconn Chairman Young Liu first visited Hyderabad in March 2023 and signed a letter of intent with the State government to set up the facility.
"Within two months everything that was required for the groundbreaking of the factory construction was completed, from the land allocation, the regulatory approvals, the incentive to the financial closure, and the finalization of the project," the special secretary says.
"In May 2023, the Chairman of Foxconn Interconnect Technology Limited, Sidney Lu came to Telangana to initiate the plant's groundbreaking ceremony," the secretary says. According to the Hindu Businessline, Foxconn had previously announced investments of US$500 million in Hyderabad and the plant would employ 25,000 people.
When asked to confirm if the hearables include Apple's Airpod, the secretary declined to comment, suggesting Foxconn as a contract manufacturer works with various brands and what kind of brands they serve is their internal decision. Reddy suggests the vendor is happy with the progress, not specifying Apple or any company in his comments.
Reddy also referenced Boeing's first Hyderabad manufacturing project in 2016 as the prime example of the state's speedy delivery. Jointly established with Tata Electronics, Reddy claims the project took 11 months, from groundbreaking to the first aircraft part of the Apache fuselage coming out of the factory.
In the pipeline
Reddy and his team of delegations from the Telangana state are currently visiting Taiwan. Beyond touring COMPUTEX 2024 currently being held at the Taipei Nangang Exhibition Center, the state delegation also visited Foxconn, while meeting with other Taiwanese companies like Pegatron, Wistron, and Viewsonic regarding other potential manufacturing investments.
He also mentioned some Indian companies are engaged with MicroLED maker PlayNitride to explore the potential of a joint semiconductor venture under the Indian Semiconductor Mission (ISM). Although specifics were not shared about the discussions.
