Google plans to manufacture its flagship Pixel 8 smartphone in India, Google chief executive officer Sundar Pichai said on Thursday, joining a growing list of global technolgy companies limiting their supply chains’ dependence on China.
Pichai’s announcement follows US rival Apple Inc’s release last month of its latest iPhone, including units made in India, as technology giants target the South Asian nation’s fast-expanding market and abundant supply of cheap skilled labor.
“We shared plans at #GoogleforIndia [event on Thursday] to manufacture Pixel smartphones locally and expect the first devices to roll out in 2024,” Pichai wrote on X.
Photo: Reuters
Pichai added that Google appreciated the “support for Make in India” — a flagship policy of Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s government, offering faster business clearances and financial incentives for manufacturing goods in the nation.
New Delhi has ramped up its production and exports of mobile phones and other electronic goods since the scheme was introduced.
India’s mobile phone exports almost doubled to US$8.5 billion year-on-year in 2022-2023, official figures showed.
Google senior vice president Rick Osterloh said that the firm sees “an even greater opportunity to make Pixel smartphones available to more people” in India.
“In recent years, India has established itself as a truly world-class hub for manufacturing, resulting in a thriving environment for businesses to flourish,” Osterloh said in a statement.
The company intends to “start with the Pixel 8, and will partner with international and domestic manufacturers to produce Pixel smartphones locally,” the statement said.
India, which is home to the second-highest number of smartphone users in the world after China, has set a target of producing about US$300 billion of local electronics and smartphones by 2025-2026.
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