Foxconn net profit rises in second quarter on AI demand

Taiwanese tech giant Foxconn on Wednesday reported a six percent jump in net profit for the second quarter of the year, driven by strong growth in demand for artificial intelligence servers.

Also known by its official name Hon Hai Precision Industry, the firm is the world's largest contract electronics manufacturer and assembles devices for major tech companies, most notably Apple's iPhones.

It said Wednesday that net profit for April-June rose to NT$35.05 billion (US$1.08 billion) from NT$33 billion the same period last year.


The figures represent the fourth consecutive quarter of profit growth for the firm as it rides the wave of demand for generative AI -- following the runaway popularity of products such as ChatGPT since it launched two years ago.

According to documents released before an earnings call with investors, revenues for AI servers surged 60 percent from the previous quarter.

Foxconn had previously declared ambitions to move beyond electronics assembly, investing significantly to be part of the AI technology market and transition into a "comprehensive situations platform provider".

It announced in October it would team up with US chip giant Nvidia to create "AI factories" -- powerful data-processing centres that would drive the production of next-generation products.