Stellantis, Foxconn partner to design, sell new purpose-built automotive semiconductors

Automaker Stellantis and technology company Hon Hai Technology Group, or Foxconn, have agreed to partner to design and sell purpose-built semiconductors for Stellantis and other automakers, Stellantis announced at its Software Day 2021 held on Dec. 7.

The two parties signed a non-binding memorandum of understanding to create the partnership, which will design a family of flexible semiconductors to support Stellantis vehicles and the company's initiatives to reduce semiconductor complexity, the automakers said in a statement.

It said the partnership would use Foxconn's domain knowledge, development capabilities and supply chain in the semiconductor industry, which would be combined with Stellantis' automotive expertise and significant scale as a semiconductor lead customer.

Stellantis CEO Carlos Tavares said in the statement that the partnership aimed to create four new families of chips that would cover over 80% of Stellantis' semiconductor needs, which would help to "significantly modernize our components, reduce complexity, and simplify the supply chain," as well as boost the automaker's ability to "innovate faster and build products and services at a rapid pace."

Foxconn aims to use the semiconductors designed through the partnership in its Foxconn EV ecosystem as it moves to extend its capabilities into electric vehicle manufacturing.

The technology company has been developing semiconductors and applications within the consumer electronics sector for a number of years and is now looking to expand into the automotive space.

In August, the company announced plans to build EV plants in the US and Thailand in 2022, and said it was also looking for possible locations in Europe.

Foxconn Technology Group Chairman and CEO Young Liu said Foxconn's semiconductors and software manufacturing experience were two key components in the production of EVs.

He added that the partnership would "tackle the long-term supply chain shortages," as Foxconn continued its expansion into the EV market.

The global automotive industry has been hit by a shortage of semiconductor chips for the better part of 2021, an issue that is expected to continue into 2022.

This is not the first partnership between Stellantis and Foxconn, with the two companies announcing in May the Mobile Drive joint venture to develop smart cockpit solutions.

Stellantis also unveiled its new electronic and software architecture, called STLA Brain, at the Software Day 2021, saying that it aimed to launch the architecture in 2024 across Stellantis' four battery EV-centric platforms, namely STLA Small, Medium, Large and Frame.