Articles tagged with "Foxconn"
Monarch Tractors won’t be built by Foxconn after Ohio factory sale
Monarch Tractor, a California-based electric tractor startup, will no longer have its vehicles manufactured by Foxconn following the Taiwanese company's sale of its Ohio factory to SoftBank. Monarch CEO Praveen Penmesta confirmed that the startup had collaborated with Foxconn to build sufficient inventory and spare parts to meet customer demand for the next 12 months. Penmesta also indicated that Monarch plans to announce new manufacturing partnerships soon to continue producing Monarch-enabled products. The Ohio factory, previously acquired by Foxconn from EV startup Lordstown Motors in 2022, was intended to become a major electric vehicle manufacturing and R&D hub in North America. However, Foxconn’s efforts to establish a contract manufacturing operation for electric vehicles at the plant largely failed. Monarch was one of four companies Foxconn promoted as customers, but only a few hundred tractors were produced before Monarch faced financial struggles and layoffs. The other three prospective customers—Lordstown Motors, Fisker Inc., and IndiEV—have all since gone bankrupt or
electric-vehiclesmanufacturingFoxconnMonarch-Tractorstartupenergytransportation-technologyFoxconn sells former GM factory to mystery buyer after failing to make EVs
Foxconn has sold the former General Motors factory in Ohio, which it acquired in 2021 for $230 million, after failing to establish significant large-scale electric vehicle (EV) production there. The sale, including the factory, land, and machinery, totaled approximately $375 million, with the buyer identified only as “Crescent Dune LLC,” a newly formed Delaware entity. This marks Foxconn’s second major setback in fulfilling its U.S. manufacturing promises, following its underwhelming LCD factory project in Wisconsin. While Foxconn claims it will continue manufacturing automotive products at the Lordstown facility, reports indicate the company now plans to pivot the factory toward building AI servers. Foxconn’s EV ambitions at the Lordstown plant were undermined by the bankruptcy of three key EV startups it partnered with: Lordstown Motors, IndiEV, and Fisker Inc. Foxconn had a contentious relationship with Lordstown Motors, which filed for bankruptcy in June 2023 and accused Foxconn of undermining
energyelectric-vehiclesFoxconnmanufacturingautomotive-industryAI-serversEV-startupsHumanoid robots could soon build Nvidia chips at US Foxconn facility
Taiwanese manufacturing giant Foxconn is collaborating with Nvidia to develop humanoid robots intended for deployment at a new Foxconn facility in Houston, Texas. The plan, still under negotiation but expected to be finalized soon, aims to use these robots to assist in the production of Nvidia’s upcoming GB300 AI servers. If realized, this would mark the first time Nvidia products are developed with humanoid robot assistance. The Houston factory was chosen due to its new construction and ample space, facilitating the integration of advanced robotics to potentially increase production speed and reduce manufacturing costs. Foxconn is developing two types of humanoid robots, one with legs and another with a wheeled autonomous mobile robot (AMR) base, the latter being a more cost-effective option. These robots are expected to be operational by early next year, coinciding with the start of GB300 server production. This initiative aligns with broader industry trends, as companies like Mercedes-Benz and BMW have also tested humanoid robots on their production lines. Nvidia recently
humanoid-robotsNvidiaFoxconnAI-serversrobotics-manufacturingautonomous-mobile-robotsrobot-foundation-modelMitsubishi in talks to source its new EVs for Australia, New Zealand from Foxconn unit
electric-vehiclesEVsMitsubishiFoxconnautomotive-technologyrenewable-energytransportation