Foxconn to Spearhead EV

Foxconn will be spearheading an electric vehicle platform called the "MIH Alliance," Foxconn Chairman Young Liu announced on Thursday, slated to attract big global names.

Global giants such as Qualcomm, Texas Instruments, and MediaTek are among the 90 companies interested. The MIH aims to see the alliance hit its goals with the most impact in 2025, though Foxconn believes they will reach the milestones earlier in 2023 and 2024 due to hot demand.

The independently led alliance hopes that the firms can reap the benefits through the group, for example, sharing their experiences and designing concepts, and shortening the period for development. This would allow firms to lower R&D costs as well.

Currently, the MIH Alliance is still an internal organization within Foxconn, but Liu expects that to change at the end of June next year when the company brings it out to stand on its own.

As the original members, Foxconn and the joint venture with Yulon Motors will share the MIH data and technologies. Liu said Foxconn would combine its global operational experiences with the joint venture's platform designing capabilities to provide critical resources. He added this is to ensure the platform's success. Once the MIH Alliance is independent of Foxconn, membership companies will decide on the organizational chapter rules.

Ninety firms are applying to join the alliance, Liu said, which indicates how industries are keen to keep up with the electric vehicle trend. Whether the coalition can assist in speeding up product development and lower R&D costs are the most critical challenges to overcome in the future.

Liu says employing mass manufacturing to lower costs and bolster production speeds are what Foxconn has an advantage. He expects that as early as 2022, the MIH will earn profits, with 2023 to 2024 the most critical for the alliance's finance.