Foxconn to work with OpenAI, Intrinsic on AI development in US
Taipei, November 21
Taiwan-based manufacturing giant Foxconn (Hon Hai Precision Industry Co) announced on Friday that it will partner with ChatGPT developer OpenAI and Alphabet's Intrinsic in artificial intelligence cooperation in the United States, Focus Taiwan reported.
In a statement, Foxconn, known as Foxconn globally, said its collaboration with OpenAI will focus on "design work and US manufacturing readiness for the next generation of AI infrastructure hardware."
The announcement came after Foxconn Chairman Young Liu said at an investor conference on Nov. 12 that his company had been in discussions with OpenAI on data center development.
Under the partnership, OpenAI will "share insight into emerging hardware needs across the AI industy," helping inform Foxconn's "design and development efforts for hardware to be manufactured" at its facilities in the United States, according to Foxconn.
The partnership will also emphasise developing data center hardware, strengthening and simplifying US AI supply chain hardware, and building critical AI data center components in the US, the company said.
While the initial agreement does not include purchase commitments or financial obligations, Foxconn said, OpenAI will have early access to evaluate these systems and an option to purchase these devices.
"Building this infrastructure in the US is essential to strengthening supply chains and supporting continued American leadership in AI," Foxconn said.
In a separate statement, Foxconn said it is setting up a joint venture with Alphabet's Intrinsic to build an AI robotics factory of the future.
The planned factory will focus on AI-enabled robotics, which Foxconn said holds enormous potential for the manufacturing sector and production because they will make operations more flexible, adaptive and cost effective.
Initially, Foxconn said, the deal will join with Intrinsic Flowstate -- a developer environment to build automation solutions -- on assembly, inspection, machine management and logistics development to "automate newly possible solutions in electronics assembly."
"The goal will be to shift from product-specific automation solutions requiring significant re-engineering across product generations, to more general-purpose intelligent robotics, as well as automating previously manual processes," Foxconn said.
— ANI
Reader Comments
While this partnership sounds promising, I'm concerned about how this will affect manufacturing jobs in India. Foxconn has significant operations here, and if they shift focus to AI robotics in the US, what happens to our Make in India initiative? Need more clarity on this.
Great move by Foxconn! AI and robotics are the future of manufacturing. Indian companies should also partner with OpenAI and similar firms to stay competitive. Jio and TCS should take note! 💡
As someone working in tech, I appreciate that they're focusing on general-purpose robotics instead of product-specific solutions. This approach will make automation more scalable and cost-effective for various industries worldwide.
The US is really pushing hard to bring manufacturing back home with AI partnerships. India needs similar strategic partnerships to boost our manufacturing sector. Hope our government is watching this closely! 🇮🇳
No purchase commitments mentioned - that's smart risk management by both parties. They can test the waters before making big investments. Indian startups should learn from such partnership models.
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