After Apple and Samsung, Google is set to make its phones in India.
Google will manufacture its brand new Pixel 8 smartphones in India in collaboration with Noida-based contract manufacturer Dixon, ET reports. Trial production of the phone has already reportedly begun, and the first made-in-India will be ready for sale by September this year.
Dixon will have a capacity to make 1 lakh Pixel phones a month. 25-30 percent of these phones will be exported. The Pixel 8 model accounts for 80 percent of all Pixel phones sold in India, and thus far they were being manufactured in countries like China and Vietnam.
It had been reported all the way back in 2022 that Google was looking to make Pixel phones in India. At that point, Pixel phones were exclusively made in China, and the move had been prompted by the Covid-induced disruptions to supply chains in the country. At that point, Google had asked manufacturers in India to submit bids for the assembly of 500,000 to 1 million units of its Pixel smartphones.
It appears that Dixon has won the bid. The company was founded in 1993 by Sunil Vachani and is headquartered in Noida. Dixon had started off manufacturing colour TVs, and by 2008 was also manufacturing lighting blubs. In 2010, the company had begun manufacturing LED TVs. Over the years, Dixon has expanded its operations to various sub-segments of electronics, including consumer durables, home appliances, lighting, mobile phones, security devices, set top boxes, wearables and medical equipment.
Dixon serves as an original equipment manufacturer (OEM) and original design manufacturer (ODM) for leading global and domestic brands. The company has manufacturing facilities located in Uttar Pradesh, Uttarakhand and Andhra Pradesh, along with R&D centers in India and China. Last year, it recorded revenue of Rs. 17,691 crore, and employed 2,840 people.