Throughout his keynote deal with at Computex in Taipei right now, Foxconn chairman Younger Liu warned that generative AI and robotics would possibly quickly make low-wage human labor pointless on the meeting line. This might have enormous implications that go method past iPhone manufacturing.
A pricey shift within the meeting line
As reported by The RegisterLiu informed the viewers that after plugging AI instruments into Foxconn’s workflows, software program now performs roughly 80 % of the work required to configure tools for a contemporary manufacturing run. And it does so sooner than people ever may.
He added that whereas the mix of “bots and brains” can not change each human (which they tried), the combo speeds troubleshooting on the manufacturing unit flooring. However that productiveness acquire would possibly come at an enormous value for what he known as “low-GDP” nations:
Generative AI and robotics will fill the void. (…) That’s the alternative I see when a rustic turns into extra affluent. The low-GDP work shall be executed by GenAI and robotics. (…) I believe that’s the actual problem for all developed nations. (…) I urge leaders of developed nations to look at this very rigorously.
Liu additionally introduced that Foxconn has been fine-tuning its personal model of Meta’s Llama 3 and 4 fashions. This manufacturing-centric mannequin, dubbed “FoxBrain,” will autonomously carry out particular shop-floor duties. He stated Foxconn intends to open-source the mannequin however didn’t present a timeline.
What this would possibly imply for the iPhone
Regardless of latest occasions, Foxconn nonetheless assembles the overwhelming majority of iPhones in China. Whereas Apple has been increasing manufacturing to areas like India, Vietnam, and Brazil, China’s mixture of superior manufacturing experience and, let’s say… cost-effective labor, stays a big draw.
Integrating AI and robotics into manufacturing processes may doubtlessly cut back the reliance on low-cost labor, making it extra possible for Apple to contemplate manufacturing in higher-cost areas. That, after all, would require China to only sit and watch all of it play out, which might be extremely unlikely.
However even when that had been the case, replicating the effectivity and scale of China’s manufacturing ecosystem elsewhere would stay a fancy endeavor, though Foxconn’s automation push may, over time, slim that hole.
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