If the plan goes ahead, Google will become the second major smartphone brand after Samsung to move all its smartphone production out of China
Google plans to stop making its Pixel smartphones, smartwatches and wireless earbuds in China from next year, as US-China tensions continue to push technology companies to diversify their supply chains, Nikkei Asia reported.
The company has been expanding manufacturing capacity in Vietnam and India in recent years to reduce its dependence on China. While a sizeable share of its production is still based in China, Google now appears confident that it can move all Pixel manufacturing out of the country by 2027, a source told Nikkei Asia.
Vietnam plays key role in Google’s plans
Google’s decision follows the successful development and production of its high-end Pixel smartphones in Vietnam this year. Making advanced smartphones is more complex than producing smartwatches and wireless earbuds, and the progress in Vietnam has encouraged Google to stick to its 2027 target, the report said.
If the plan goes ahead, Google would become the second major global smartphone brand after Samsung to completely shift smartphone production away from China.
The report quoted a source as saying that Google has no burden to leave China as it does not sell Pixel phones in the Chinese market
Nikkei Asia had earlier reported that Google was moving the development of new high-end Pixel models from China to Vietnam.
Google targets higher Pixel shipments
Google is also looking to increase Pixel sales despite a sharp rise in memory chip prices. The company has told suppliers that it expects Pixel shipments to rise by 8-10 per cent this year from about 12 million units last year, the news report said.
Google sees its smartphones as an important way to bring more users to its Gemini artificial intelligence services. This is one reason the company is pushing to maintain growth in Pixel shipments despite higher component costs.
Google is also trying to strengthen its position in negotiations with memory chip suppliers. It has combined orders for chips used in its cloud-computing business with smartphone orders while negotiating with Micron, Samsung and SK Hynix, the Nikkei Asia report said.
Pixel could gain from Apple price increases
The news report quoted an executive at a component supplier to Google and Xiaomi as saying that Google was among the few smartphone makers that had not reduced its shipment target for the year.
The executive added that Google could gain market share from Apple in the US, Japan and Europe if Apple raises iPhone prices.
Google last week launched the Pixel 11, Pixel 11 Pro and Pixel 11 Pro Fold. The new models start at $899 for the 256GB versions, compared with $799 for the previous-generation Pixel 10, which had 128GB of storage at the starting price.
Smartphone makers face memory chip crunch
Google is not the only smartphone company trying to maintain shipment growth despite rising memory chip costs.
Apple and Huawei are also aiming to increase shipments, Nikkei Asia reported earlier. In contrast, Xiaomi, Oppo and Vivo have cut their shipment forecasts several times this year as higher prices for memory and other components squeeze manufacturers.
Apple Chief Executive Tim Cook has said the company expects to face higher memory chip costs across its product range this quarter. The company has already increased prices for some existing MacBook and iPad models, as well as iPhones sold in Japan.
