Uppercase-tech companies are shifting their strategy away from China as their eyes turn toward Mexico for the production of critical artificial intelligence (AI) hardware components. Nvidia, Amazon, Alphabet, and Microsoft are reported to have engaged Hon Hai Precision Industry, aka Foxconn Technology, to urge expansion in production capabilities within Mexico. Further, that is seen as a direct retort to the exacerbated technological and national security tensions between the U.S. and China, coupled with the incentives in the USMCA trade agreement.
Shifting sands for tech giants eye Mexico for AI Manufacturing
The Wall Street Journal mentioned that these U.S. tech giants—Amazon, Alphabet, Nvidia, and Microsoft—had traditionally depended on China for most of the AI-related hardware components and were making the change with a big difference.
The two companies tapped Foxconn Technology to boost its manufacturing presence in Mexico as part of their worldwide efforts to bolster their manufacturing presence elsewhere amid tensions between the U.S. and China. In fact, Foxconn, the Taiwan-based powerhouse, has shown a firm commitment toward further operations in Mexico by placing investments close to $690 million in the last four years.
That underlines this opening, not only as Mexico is gaining in appeal as a manufacturing base but also as proof that the tech industry urgently needs stable and secure alternatives for Chinese production bases.
The USMCA factor and beyond
This development is highly influenced by the United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement (USMCA), signed in 2020. The USMCA will change all that, making Mexico an even more attractive location for manufacturers due to its provision of free trade and improved intellectual property protections between the member countries. That would help to raise the AI hardware production in China, as well as in countries like Mexico, where vehicle production has, up to 2023, increased to about 4 million units or by 14%, attracting interest from its automotive industry.
Wall street’s vote of confidence
Amid all these strategic realignments, Wall Street analysts have maintained a bullish view of the stocks belonging to the tech behemoths. Amongst them, Amazon’s stock is singled out as having the most upside potential—projected growth in stock value at 16.2%. In addition, its stock is awarded with a Smart Score of “Perfect 10,” meaning that investors have a strong belief in the future of the stock. By all appreciable measures, this evaluation strongly indicates that Amazon may be considered one of the most stellar opportunities for investment in the tech sector and underlines its most critical place in driving forward the shift of AI hardware manufacturing to Mexico.
Implications and expectations
The intense focus on growing AI hardware production in Mexico by U.S. technology giants is marking one of the most profound realignments in global tech manufacturing dynamics. Thus, these firms are reducing dependency on Chinese production capabilities to mitigate risks, especially those related to geopolitical tensions, and at the same time, they are making an optimum strategic advantage for USMCA. With an increase in investment and production capacity in Mexico, it should open up a more robust and diversified supply chain that ensures stable and secure provisioning of the critical components of AI.
This naturally also implies a general tendency within the industry toward “nearshoring,” by which firms bring their production closer to the primary markets in order to reduce lead times, increase visibility within the supply chain, and boost overall operational efficiency. It will be interesting to see the ripple of change that is expected to be created with these tech giants leading the way in redefining their manufacturing strategies as more companies are waking up to make a note of emerging alternative manufacturing hubs that serve strategic and economic benefits.
The entrance of Nvidia, Amazon, Alphabet, and Microsoft into producing augmented AI hardware in Mexico offers not just a hint at the fast-changing geopolitical and economic landscape but also opens up a new direction toward the future of tech manufacturing. As it unfolds, Mexico’s role in high-tech manufacturing is increasingly going to be an epicenter and will open economic and innovation opportunities for the country and surrounding regions.
Original Story From https://www.tipranks.com/news/u-s-tech-giants-eye-ai-hardware-shift-to-mexico
