Google to make Pixel in India by next quarter

As part of its plan to ship more than 10 million Pixel phones this year, Alphabet Inc's Google has told suppliers to start making its Pixel smartphones in India by next quarter. As Google focuses more on a key growth market, the tech giant said in October that it would start manufacturing smartphones in India and its flagship Pixel 8 will be available in 2024. As per a report, Google will begin manufacturing Pixel 8 Pro phones in the April-June quarter, followed by the production of the Pixel 8 around the middle of 2024.

The shift will reportedly support Google’s ambitious target of shipping more than 10 million Pixel phones this year. Google will be competing with smartphone giants Apple and Samsung in India, as well as Chinese brands vivo and Xiaomi.

In 2023, according to a Counterpoint Research report, India became the fifth smartphone market to exceed 10 million iPhone unit sales in a single year, making it a key market for Apple.

“For 2023, India’s smartphone market maintained stability with 148.6 million shipments overall, a minor drop of 2%,” research firm Canalys said last month.

“Samsung maintained pole position in Q4 2023 with a market share of 20% and shipments of 7.6 million units. Xiaomi continued its robust performance, claiming second place by shipping 7.2 million units. vivo secured third position with shipments of 7.0 million units,” according to Canalys.

As U.S.-China relations remain tense, Apple has also been shifting production from China to places such as India.