Pegatron in discussions with Tata to sell its iPhone plant in India: Sources
Pegatron 與 Tata 洽談出售其在印度的 iPhone 工廠
Pegatron is in advanced negotiations to transfer control of its sole iPhone manufacturing facility in India to the Tata Group, according to two sources familiar with the matter. This move signifies Pegatron’s continued downsizing of its partnership with Apple. Under the proposed deal, Tata would hold a minimum 65% stake in a joint venture operating the Pegatron plant near Chennai, Tamil Nadu, with Pegatron providing technical support and retaining the remaining share, one source revealed.
Tata, one of India’s largest conglomerates, intends to oversee the joint venture through its Tata Electronics unit, as per the second source. The Pegatron India factory, employing around 10,000 workers and producing 5 million iPhones annually, represents Pegatron’s last remaining facility of its kind following the relinquishment of control over an iPhone plant in China to Luxshare in a $290 million agreement last year.
小編點評：Pegatron 正與 Tata 集團進行深入談判，計畫將其位於印度的 iPhone 製造廠移轉給 Tata，象徵 Pegatron 持續調整其與 Apple 的合作架構。在此擬議中的交易下，Tata 將至少持有合資企業 65% 的股份，而 Pegatron 則提供技術支援並保留其餘股份。這座位於清奈附近的工廠雇用約 1 萬名員工，每年生產 500 萬支 iPhone。
Tata Group to rope in top talent from Taiwan for semiconductor manufacturing
Tata 集團將延攬台灣頂尖半導體人才以推動印度晶片製造
The Tata Group, which is establishing a semiconductor and chip manufacturing facility in India, is reportedly seeking top talent from Taiwan, a country responsible for over 50% of global semiconductor production. According to a Moneycontrol report, Tata Electronics will conduct a roadshow in Hsinchu county, Taiwan, on April 13. Hsinchu is home to several chip fabrication plants, including Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company and United Microelectronics Corporation.
Tata Electronics aims to attract Taiwanese professionals with 5-16 years of experience in semiconductor manufacturing roles. The company plans to offer initial training in Taiwan for 18 months, with the expectation that candidates will eventually relocate to India. Roles such as equipment engineers, yield engineers, automation engineers, and diploma-holding technicians for electric and mechanical troubleshooting are among those Tata is looking to fill.
小編點評：Tata 集團正積極從台灣延攬半導體專業人才，以支持其在印度推動的晶片製造計畫。台灣為全球半導體產能龍頭，Tata Electronics 鎖定具有 5–16 年經驗的台灣專業人士，並規劃先在台灣提供 18 個月訓練，再將人才派至印度，補足設備工程、良率工程、自動化與技術員等關鍵職缺。
Indian govt coming up with a new AI law to safeguard content creators’ and news publishers’ rights: Report
印度政府將制定新 AI 法律以保障內容創作者與新聞出版業權益
The Union Minister for Electronics and Information Technology, Ashwini Vaishnaw, has revealed that the government is contemplating a new law concerning artificial intelligence (AI). As per a report by The Economic Times, the proposed legislation aims to protect the interests of news publishers and content creators while mitigating user harm. This law could either stand alone or become part of the forthcoming Digital India Bill, which is set to replace the Information Technology Act of 2000. The minister stressed the importance of respecting creativity in terms of intellectual property and financial implications, suggesting that a legislative approach to regulation would be more effective than a self-regulatory body.
In response to global calls for safeguarding content creators’ rights, particularly regarding copyrighted material used by tech giants without compensation, the Indian government is addressing concerns raised by news publishers. The Digital News Publishers Association (DNPA), representing 17 major media publishers in India, has advocated for changes to IT rules to ensure equitable compensation for content utilized by AI models, seeking protection against potential copyright infringements.
Devika, India’s first AI engineer who can do it all
Just weeks after Devin, the renowned AI-chatbot engineer from the United States gained global attention for its near-perfect software coding abilities, a 21-year-old engineer from Kerala has introduced India’s inaugural AI software engineer. Dubbed Devika, this AI software engineering bot, developed solely by Mufeed VH, exhibits remarkable capabilities including comprehending human instructions, generating software code, troubleshooting glitches, and bug identification. Mufeed VH envisions Devika as a revolutionary force in the software development landscape.
Inspired by Devin’s success, engineered by Cognition Labs, Mufeed VH embarked on Devika’s development journey spurred by a tweet that sparked his idea. With just 20 hours of coding spread over three days, he crafted Devika, an AI agent capable of autonomously handling software development tasks. Powered by advanced language models like Claude and GPT-4, Devika’s standout feature lies in its logical reasoning prowess and independent code creation, marking it as India’s first indigenous open-source project in this domain.
To counteract the downturn, Foxconn’s Bharat FIH looks beyond Xiaomi
為應對低迷，鴻海旗下 Bharat FIH 開始轉向小米以外的業務
Foxconn group company Bharat FIH’s sprawling campus near Chennai, initially dedicated to manufacturing Android phones, is now shifting its focus to diversify its operations in response to a decline in orders from its main client Xiaomi, following government actions against Chinese businesses in India. Seeking to offset this slump, Bharat FIH aims to explore new segments such as telecom equipment, electric vehicles, televisions, and displays.
The facility at Sriperumbadur is primarily utilized for surface-mount technology (SMT) operations, supplemented by assembly, testing, marking, and packaging (ATMP) operations for specific segments. Bharat FIH is leveraging its success in smartphone manufacturing to venture into emerging areas like electric vehicles, demonstrating its adaptability to evolving market demands. While the company remains discreet about the Sriperumbudur plant’s operating capacity, it asserts its readiness to scale up production in response to customer requirements and prevailing market conditions.
小編點評：由於主要客戶小米的訂單下滑，Foxconn 的 Bharat FIH 正調整策略、尋求業務多元化。該公司將從手機製造拓展至電信設備、電動車、電視與顯示器等新領域，以因應市場變動並充分運用其製造能力。
PLI cuts imports while sparking a boom in local electronics manufacturing
PLI 計畫降低進口依賴，同時引爆印度本地電子製造熱潮
India’s electronics manufacturing sector undergoes a significant makeover fueled by the production-linked incentive (PLI) scheme, resulting in a substantial reduction in imports of various electronics components. Commerce ministry data reveals a notable 40% decrease in imports of completely assembled electronics units, including smartphones, from April to January in FY24. This decline is primarily attributed to a 5% year-on-year increase in domestic electronics manufacturing, especially in smartphones, propelled by the PLI initiative. Imports of plastic and mechanical parts, such as charger adapters, also witnessed significant drops in both volume and value, underscoring the growing trend towards self-sufficiency in electronics production.
Despite the advancements, challenges persist in enhancing local value addition to bolster export competitiveness, highlighted by increased imports of camera modules, display assemblies, and battery packs. Nevertheless, India’s electronics exports surged impressively by 22.24% during the April–December 2023 period, surpassing $20 billion, largely driven by robust smartphone exports from major players like Apple and Samsung.
小編點評：印度電子製造領域在 PLI（生產連結獎勵）計畫推動下，完全組裝電子產品（含手機）自 FY24 4 月至 1 月進口量大減 40%，同時國內製造年增 5%。雖然高附加價值零件仍需仰賴進口，但印度電子出口已在 2023 年 4–12 月期間大幅成長 22.24%，突破 200 億美元，主力來自 Apple 與 Samsung 的手機出口。
April 1 marks the start of a new ₹500 crore plan to promote electric mobility
印度 4 月 1 日啟動全新 500 億盧比電動移動推廣計畫
A new Rs 500 crore scheme to promote electric mobility in India is set to kick off on April 1 and will run until the end of July. Meanwhile, the second phase of the FAME (Faster Adoption and Manufacturing of Electric Vehicles) scheme, known as FAME-II, concludes on March 31, 2024. Subsidies provided under the FAME scheme will be applicable for electric vehicles sold until March 31 or until the allocated funds are exhausted.
Under the Electric Mobility Promotion Scheme (EMPS) 2024, a support of up to Rs 10,000 per two-wheeler will be offered, aiming to assist approximately 3.33 lakh two-wheelers. Additionally, incentives of up to Rs 25,000 will be provided for the purchase of small three-wheelers, benefiting over 41,000 such vehicles. Financial aid of up to Rs 50,000 will be available for large three-wheelers. The EMPS 2024, with a total outlay of Rs 500 crore for four months from and three-wheelers, further promoting green mobility and fostering the electric vehicle manufacturing ecosystem in the country as announced by the Heavy Industries Ministry on March 13. The scheme targets to support 3,72,215 electric vehicles, with incentives extended only to vehicles equipped with advanced batteries to incentivize advanced technologies.April 1 to July 31, 2024, aims to accelerate the adoption of electric two-wheelers
小編點評：印度自 4 月 1 日啟動「電動移動推廣計畫（EMPS 2024）」，預算 500 億盧比，至 7 月 31 日止。計畫補助電動機車最高 1 萬盧比、小型三輪車最高 2.5 萬盧比、大型三輪車最高 5 萬盧比，預計支持 37.2 萬輛採用先進電池的電動車，推動綠色交通與本地電動車製造生態系發展。