Foxconn launches three made-to-order electric vehicle concepts as it steals the march on Apple’s secret automotive project

Foxconn Technology Group unveiled its first electric vehicles, a milestone that could boost the Taiwanese electronics manufacturer’s credentials as a serious bidder for Apple’s secretive automotive project.

The SUV and sedan models introduced on Monday are concept vehicles that the manufacturer plans to build for automotive customers rather than sell under its own brand. Executives including Young Liu, chairman of Foxconn’s flagship unit Hon Hai Precision Industry, unveiled the vehicles at the company’s Technology Day event in Taipei.

Foxconn is the largest assembler of iPhones, giving it an edge as a potential carmaker partner for Apple as the US company weighs expanding into vehicles. As part of its aggressive push into cars, Foxconn agreed in late September to spend US$280 million on the purchase of an auto plant in Ohio from embattled start-up Lordstown Motors. “We are no longer the new kid in town,” Liu said. “We have gradually built an EV supply chain and showcased our EV hardware.”

Taiwan’s Yulon Motor will be Foxconn’s first electric-car customer, Lilian Chen, Yulon’s chairwoman, said at the Taipei event. Foxconn also displayed its electric bus, which is set to be delivered to a local transportation provider next year.

Foxconn is among the technology companies targeting EVs as a source of growth beyond low-margin electronics assembly. The Ohio plant deal is a boon for Foxconn, giving it assembly capacity, equipment and talent, Citigroup analyst Carrie Liu wrote in a recent note.