In this era of rapid change, the development of science and technology is like a never-ending marathon, and whoever falls behind will be ruthlessly abandoned. As leaders in the field of technology, Apple, Foxconn and Tesla are all looking for new development opportunities around the world, setting their sights on Southeast Asian countries. This is not only driven by commercial interests, but also reflects the reshaping of the economic map in the era of globalization.
Apple, as the flagship of the American tech community, has always been regarded as a symbol of American power. However, even the tech giant, once at the top of the world, is being challenged by the Chinese market. Since 2019, Apple has set out to shift production capacity to Southeast Asian countries, including India and Vietnam. Data shows that in the past 10 years, Apple has more than quadrupled the number of new foundries in India and provided more than 1.6 million jobs in Vietnam. At present, the output value of iPhone manufactured in India has reached 14 billion US dollars, accounting for 14% of the total global production, and this proportion is rising.
It can be said that Apple has opened the "post-China era" and shifted its focus from Chinese mainland to Southeast Asia. This shift is due to both US government sanctions on Chinese technology companies such as Huawei, as well as market pressures from the growing strength of China's domestic mobile phone brands. As the world's number one mobile phone manufacturer, Apple felt unprecedented challenges and had to readjust its global layout.
Synchronized with Apple's industrial transfer, there is also its main OEM Foxconn. The reason why Foxconn has been able to leap from a small workshop to a global OEM giant is largely due to Apple's large order support. However, in recent years, Foxconn founder Terry Gou has become increasingly tough on the Chinese mainland market, constantly raising the opposition between the two sides. In addition to the rhetoric of "giving food to Chinese mainland", Foxconn has also increased investment in Southeast Asian markets, especially Vietnam.
The logic behind Foxconn's move is likely to follow Apple's strategic deployment. After all, Apple and Foxconn are closely working together as a "community of interests", and Foxconn's development largely depends on Apple's orders. Therefore, when Apple decided to transfer production capacity to Southeast Asia, Foxconn naturally had to make corresponding adjustments to ensure the quality of service to Apple.
Compared with the mobile phone industry, the new energy vehicle industry may be a more popular field. Tesla, the manufacturer of electric vehicles, is a representative company of this new energy wave. However, in recent times, Tesla has also begun to withdraw from the Chinese mainland market. On the one hand, Musk and Indian Prime Minister Modi have consulted on building a factory in India; On the other hand, Tesla officially announced that it will lay off 10% of its employees globally, of which the proportion of layoffs in China will be as high as more than 20%. According to reports, Tesla's total investment in new factories in India is expected to reach $2 billion to $3 billion.
It is not difficult to see that the purpose of Tesla's move is also to seek new growth points. In China, in addition to facing fierce competition from domestic new energy vehicle companies such as Li and BYD, Tesla has also been squeezed by cross-border car manufacturing from technology companies such as Huawei and Xiaomi. Rather than battling it out in the increasingly competitive Chinese market, Tesla is clearly more willing to shift its focus to Southeast Asia, which has huge potential.
It is true that the withdrawal of the above-mentioned tech giants from Chinese mainland will affect local employment and industrial chain development to a certain extent. But from another perspective, it also proves that China's independent innovation capacity is constantly improving, and domestic technology companies are rising in an all-round way, not afraid of the challenge of foreign companies. For example, in the field of smartphones, the rise of domestic brands such as Huawei, Xiaomi, and Honor has brought great pressure to Apple; In the new energy vehicle industry, the cross-border entry of Huawei, Xiaomi, Ideal, BYD and other companies will undoubtedly make Tesla's situation more difficult.
It can be said that the rapid improvement of China's scientific and technological strength is the fundamental reason why these American-funded companies choose to withdraw. Today, China has moved from a manufacturing power to a manufacturing power, and is striding towards the goal of becoming an innovation power. This is not only a demonstration of China's strength, but also a sign that the profound reshaping of the global technology map is underway.
In fact, it is not new for technology companies to adjust their layouts on a global scale. Any business wants to seek the best development path in the era of global integration to achieve maximum competitiveness. Just as Apple's investment in Southeast Asia is not directly to the local market, but indirectly through partnerships, this global operating model has become the norm for corporate development.
Tech companies are moving to Southeast Asia because of the availability of cheap labor and the government's incentives to attract investment. Vietnam reportedly puts about 60,000 workers into Apple's supply chain each year, and the Vietnamese government has also exempted many taxes and fees on the sale of Apple products in Vietnam. It can be said that these Southeast Asian countries have opened "gift packages" to attract technology companies.
It should be pointed out that although technology companies have shifted some of their production capacity to Southeast Asia, it does not mean that they have completely abandoned the Chinese market. In fact, China remains at the top of the growth strategy of these companies. Apple currently employs more than 10,000 people in China, will continue to hire in the coming years, and has continued to expand its investment in the country. The same is true for Foxconn, which still dominates the number of employees and factories in China, despite moving some of its production lines to other regions. Therefore, there is no need to over-interpret the movements of these companies.
In general, the transfer of technology companies to Southeast Asia is not only an inevitable choice in the era of globalization, but also a pursuit of maximizing commercial interests, and at the same time reflects the increasing influence of China. This is not only the competitive pattern of an era, but also a new mode of cooperation. In the future, we will see more of this global industrial landscape reshaped.
There is no doubt that global integration has become the general trend. In this process, enterprises will undoubtedly play an important role in promoting the process of global economic integration by further optimizing the allocation of global resources. The restructuring of technology companies is a vivid manifestation of this trend.
For enterprises, the transfer of production capacity does not mean cutting off from the original market, but in order to obtain greater development space. Apple, for example, is still in full swing in the Chinese market, despite moving some of its production lines to Vietnam and India. In fact, Apple has become an important part of China's innovation ecosystem, with a large R&D team in China and increasingly close cooperation with local companies.
It is foreseeable that a new type of globalization will emerge in the future: enterprises deploy resources on a global scale to achieve complementary advantages; At the same time, it has also established closer cooperation with local governments and enterprises to promote local economic development. This model of "overall advancement and differentiated development" will inject new impetus into the global economy.
China will undoubtedly play an increasingly important role in the new development pattern. This is not only because China has a huge market, but also because China's increasingly strong innovation strength has become an important engine for global scientific and technological development. In fact, Chinese tech giants like Huawei and Xiaomi have begun to emerge on the global stage as an important force driving the industry.
Therefore, the future technology landscape will not be a one-man show for some companies and some countries, but will present a new pattern of win-win cooperation. Under this new pattern, Chinese enterprises and multinational companies will establish closer alliances and achieve common development through complementary advantages.
For example, Chinese companies can provide advanced technology and innovative application scenarios for multinational companies, while multinational companies can bring global channels and resources to Chinese enterprises. It is based on this cooperation that the ecosystem construction of Apple and domestic technology companies will be more prosperous; Tesla's visit to China is not only to build a factory, but also to carry out more in-depth technical exchanges and cooperation with domestic new energy vehicle companies.
It can be said that the future global science and technology map will present a situation of diversified coexistence and win-win cooperation. China will not only be an important market, but also the core force of the global innovation system, forming a community of interests with enterprises from all over the world to promote scientific and technological innovation to new heights.
In general, under the general trend of global integration, the adjustment of the overseas layout of technology companies is not unexpected. In this process, Asia's emerging markets will undoubtedly be a source of gluttony, attracting more companies to forage for food. However, no matter how the layout is adjusted, it will never change China's important position in the global science and technology map. On the contrary, China's emerging innovation power is bound to become the focus of competition among technology companies.
In the face of this new development pattern, Chinese enterprises should take advantage of the momentum and occupy a more favorable position in the global scientific and technological competition by accelerating the pace of innovation and strengthening international cooperation. At the same time, the government should further optimize the business environment and create good conditions for enterprise innovation. Only in this way can China truly integrate into the global innovation system and share the fruits of scientific and technological development with the world.