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Foxconn to replace some workers with 1 million robots within 3 years

Sunday, July 31, 2011 · 6:30 pm · 43 Comments

“Taiwanese technology giant Foxconn will replace some of its workers with 1 million robots in three years to cut rising labor expenses and improve efficiency, said Terry Gou, founder and chairman of the company, late Friday,” Xinhua News reports.

“The company currently has 10,000 robots and the number will be increased to 300,000 next year and 1 million in three years, according to Gou,” Xinhua News reports. “Foxconn, the world’s largest maker of computer components which assembles products for Apple [and other companies]… currently employs 1.2 million people, with about 1 million of them based on the Chinese mainland.”

Full article here.

[Thanks to MacDailyNews Readers "Fred Mertz" and "Edward W. for the heads up.]

Categories: News

Tags: Foxconn, Hon Hai

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Comment Feed

43 Comments

Michael A. Robson

Sunday, July 31, 2011 - 7:02 pm · Reply

But who will build those robots??
- BubbaBEAR
  
  Sunday, July 31, 2011 - 7:05 pm · Reply
  
  iRobot.
- Ballmer's left nut
  
  Sunday, July 31, 2011 - 7:12 pm · Reply
  
  There are several foremost industrial robot manufacturers in the world, one of which is ABB of Switzerland, Fujitsu in Japan and a few smaller ones in the U.S. and Canada, but these specialize in wafer fabrication robotics and to a smaller extent warehouse distribution and stacking. ABB & Fujitsu manufacture assembly line robotics which are currently used in car and to a smaller extent truck assembly.
- Ballmer's left nut
  
  Sunday, July 31, 2011 - 7:36 pm · Reply
  
  -> Michael A. Robson
  
  迈克尔罗布森您好，我的名字是史蒂夫鲍尔默，微软的董事总经理。我是Mac的秘密情人，所以我访问我的Mac新闻网站。
  - Thryll
    
    Sunday, July 31, 2011 - 7:49 pm · Reply
    
    DAMN! That’s the wiring diagram for my ’77 Dodge pickup!
  - Richie
    
    Sunday, July 31, 2011 - 10:02 pm · Reply
    
    Ha. Too funny Mr. Balmer stuff
  - Michael A. Robson
    
    Sunday, July 31, 2011 - 11:20 pm · Reply
    
    高兴认识你啊，微软的大猪王子。我没想到你是个苹果公司的粉丝。
chefpastry

Sunday, July 31, 2011 - 7:23 pm · Reply

I’m happy for Foxconn. Maybe, now, they’ll be scrutinized less for how their employees are treated.
- Data
  
  Sunday, July 31, 2011 - 8:04 pm · Reply
  
  Only until the robots are declared sentient beings by the liberals and labor unions in the U.S.
  - Georgia Bill
    
    Sunday, July 31, 2011 - 8:26 pm · Reply
    
    Wah wah wah
  - Thryll
    
    Sunday, July 31, 2011 - 9:20 pm · Reply
    
    As well they should be. Compared to the conservatives and their anti-union/anti-living-wage views, robots ARE sentient beings.
  - kingmel
    
    Sunday, July 31, 2011 - 11:16 pm · Reply
    
    Just wait until they unionize and demand twice daily oil breaks and new power conditioning units.
    
    Oh, wait. You were serious, weren’t you?
  - James
    
    Monday, August 1, 2011 - 7:30 am · Reply
    
    The only difference between conservatives and liberal on economics is their method of welfare; conservatives with Corporate welfare and Liberals with Social Welfare.
    
    Conservatives are against taxing the job creators but don’t mind dumping taxes on consumers who buy the goods, you know, the middle class who buy goods – the other job creators.
    
    You can only cut taxes and interest rates for so long until their is nothing left to cut. Then what do you stimulate the economy with? Under conservative theory they seem to imply the economy with always be great with no taxes.
    
    That’s non-sense… plus, without taxes we either give up all public services like parks, libraries, highways or turn them all into tollways and charge admission.
  - James
    
    Monday, August 1, 2011 - 7:34 am · Reply
    
    @ Data
    
    You might want to watch the new version of BattleStar Galactica. The robots turned on their makers after being treated like shit for too long.
    
    I’d be careful what you say about robots.
    - emmayche
      
      Monday, August 1, 2011 - 10:51 am · Reply
      
      Never anthropomorphize robots.
      
      They hate that.
Joe

Sunday, July 31, 2011 - 7:32 pm · Reply

Lol. So now China is outsourcing.
- Michael A. Robson
  
  Sunday, July 31, 2011 - 11:21 pm · Reply
  
  Or automating… tee hee, oh wait.
Lyle Dog

Sunday, July 31, 2011 - 7:58 pm · Reply

Why couldn’t these be American Robots assembling iEverything here in America?
- Tevionenator
  
  Sunday, July 31, 2011 - 8:06 pm · Reply
  
  Where did you see “American” robots?
- Marty
  
  Sunday, July 31, 2011 - 10:34 pm · Reply
  
  How would that help or change much of anything? I actually thought there would be more vaginal defecation splattered on that topic by now. Oh it’s the Sabbath, nevermind.
  - j.eric
    
    Sunday, July 31, 2011 - 11:04 pm · Reply
    
    Marty you are a truly stunning piece of work
rob

Sunday, July 31, 2011 - 8:07 pm · Reply

The real mone is in Robot repair!
- Thundervolt
  
  Sunday, July 31, 2011 - 11:29 pm · Reply
  
  See a need, fill a need!
Johnny Appleseed

Sunday, July 31, 2011 - 8:17 pm · Reply

“Machines building machines – how perverse!”
- TheConfuzed1
  
  Monday, August 1, 2011 - 1:04 am · Reply
  
  D’oh!
  
  You beat me to the punchline!
skylark

Sunday, July 31, 2011 - 8:56 pm · Reply

Who is going to build the robots? …
speckles

Sunday, July 31, 2011 - 10:08 pm · Reply

It’s all great until one of these robots flings itself from the roof…
- Gadfly
  
  Sunday, July 31, 2011 - 11:09 pm · Reply
  
  Nice riposte.
kingmel

Sunday, July 31, 2011 - 11:19 pm · Reply

A lot of Chinese workers stand to lose their jobs over the next three years. This is the type of thing that is going to happen worldwide over the next decade. Better learn to design, program, or maintain robots.
hotinplaya

Sunday, July 31, 2011 - 11:21 pm · Reply

The article I read went into more detail “Foxconn has created a new division to develop and manufacture the robots called Skynet. The 1st models are T100′s but the new division plans on a series of models including T800 and T1000′s. The company has received permission from Apple to use the company’s recently purchased patents in liquid metal, especially ones dealing with mimetic polyalloy.”
- jtcdesigns
  
  Monday, August 1, 2011 - 2:02 pm · Reply
  
  hahaha this is what I thought of too when I read the title.
TheConfuzed1

Monday, August 1, 2011 - 1:00 am · Reply

Machines making machines… How perverse!

Do you suppose these will be suicidal robots?
iCupertino

Monday, August 1, 2011 - 1:17 am · Reply

Although China’s labor cost is in upward trend at an increasing rate, China still present a HUGH opportunity for AAPL (and others)

If AAPL able to bring iPhones and iPads to the remaining 2 China telecommunication companies (however all 3 are owned by China’s Communist Party!!), AAPL shareholders will be rewarded extremely handsomely
John C. Randolph

Monday, August 1, 2011 - 1:57 am · Reply

Foxconn’s already got huge numbers of robots. Nobody hand-assembles printed circuit boards anymore.

-jcr
The Other Steve

Monday, August 1, 2011 - 2:06 am · Reply

Working an assembly line is a mind numbing experience. If you have ever done it you know what I mean. I’ve always felt sorry for Foxconn and other assembly line workers who do the same thing over, and over, and over, and over and over all day long.

Loosing your job, something I also know about first hand, is not desirable either.
John P

Monday, August 1, 2011 - 3:38 am · Reply

I predict the robot uprising will being at Foxconn sometime in the future.
Alex Mac

Monday, August 1, 2011 - 5:45 am · Reply

Slightly worrying, this trend. Where do people of the future earn their living, to buy the stuff the robots make? We can’t all work in software, Sainsburys supermarket or Starbucks… back to the land maybe?
- Jax44
  
  Monday, August 1, 2011 - 6:27 am · Reply
  
  Workin’ in the coal mine…..
  - argusx
    
    Monday, August 1, 2011 - 7:13 am · Reply
    
    No, can’t do that either. Coal is a fossil fuel and will be made too expensive by the Cap and Trade Bill and the EPA when electricity rates “necessarily skyrocket”.
- quiviran
  
  Monday, August 1, 2011 - 8:36 am · Reply
  
  Legit question. Economics boils down to three factors: Land, Labor and Capital. Historically, Land has been owned by a few, Capital by even fewer and the vast majority of us have been Labor. Despite drawing minute distinctions (i.e. is the hourly worker in a bank part of Capital or Labor?), it is pretty much the same today. Where do we (Labor) go in a world where much labor is provided by machines? Some of us will tend the machines, but where are the limits of how much the machines produce and who will be able to consume that much stuff? I’m seeing shorter work weeks and more public services. WWJWD? (What Would John Wayne Do?) Ride off into the sunset, clean his guns, pray? Tough questions. Much more important than gay marriage.
  - Wow Tech
    
    Monday, August 1, 2011 - 9:55 am · Reply
    
    Marion would hide under the bed during wartime, then appear on screen 30 feet high defeating entire countries single-handed while berating children for not voluntarily turning themselves into cannon fodder for Exxon.
technews5

Monday, August 1, 2011 - 12:20 pm · Reply

The Taiwanese company, which manufacturers laptops, mobile devices, and other hardware for Apple, Hewlett-Packard, Dell, and Sony, plans to replace factory workers with more than 1 million robots, according to a state news agency Xinhua report. Terry Gou, founder and chairman of the company, told employees at a dance Friday that the move is designed to improve efficiency and combat rising labor costs.
http://www.technews5.com/2011/08/foxconn-to-work-with-1-million-robots.html
gotwake

Monday, August 1, 2011 - 12:31 pm · Reply

Breaking News………. robot suicides on the rise….. story at 11…..