New Delhi: Apple Inc has begun manufacturing its marquee iPhone 14 in India at Foxconn’s facility at Sriperumbudur near Chennai in Tamil Nadu as the global tech giant taps into production prowess outside of China.
The US firm has started manufacturing the iPhone 14 in the world's second-biggest smart-phone market within weeks of the September 7 unveiling of the device.
“We are excited to be manufacturing iPhone 14 in India,” Apple said in a statement. “The new iPhone 14 line-up introduces groundbreaking new technologies and important safety capabilities.”
Apple, headquartered in Cupertino, California, started manufacturing iPhones in India in 2017 with iPhone SE. Today, it manufactures some of its most advanced iPhones in the country, including iPhone 12, iPhone 13 and now iPhone 14.
Sources said the made-in-India iPhone 14 will begin to reach local customers in the next few days. Phones manufactured in India are for both the Indian market and exports.
Apple, which long made most of its iPhones in China, could make as many as one out of four iPhones in India by 2025, JP Morgan analysts said in a note last week.
iPhone devices in the past were assembled in India about six to nine months after production started in Chinese factories. This duration has been cut short to just a couple of weeks.
The iconic brand has a longstanding history in India that started more than 20 years ago. Apple launched its online store in the country in Sep 2020 and is set to deepen its commitment with the launch of the Apple retail store.
The recent manufacturing expansion builds on several Apple initiatives in the country, including an app design and development accelerator in Bengaluru and programmes with local organisations to support renewable energy training and development for communities.
India's vibrant market is turning out to be the sweet spot for the US tech giant, as the company reported "near doubling" of revenue in the country in the quarter ended June 2022.
Apple CEO Tim Cook, during earnings call in July, said: "We set June quarter records in the Americas, in Europe and the rest of the Asia Pacific region. We also saw June quarter revenue records in both developed and emerging markets, with very strong double-digit growth in Brazil, Indonesia and Vietnam and a near doubling of revenue in India."
