Apple operating chief Jeff Williams makes rare Taiwan visit to attend gala of iPhone maker Foxconn

Williams was a guest of honour at a gala celebrating the 50th anniversary of Foxconn, also attended by the CEOs of SoftBank and Arm
Foreign executives often opt for low-key visits to Taiwan to avoid a reaction from Beijing, with Apple CEO Tim Cook mostly avoiding the island

Foxconn

BloombergandReuters

Published: 10:53am, 21 Feb 2024

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Apple’s chief operating officer Jeff Williams is on a rare visit to Taiwan to celebrate the 50th anniversary of Foxconn Technology Group, the company that helped build the iPhone empire by assembling those devices to exacting standards in factories across mainland China.

In Taipei on Tuesday night, Williams was joined by Apple’s senior vice-president of operations, Sabih Khan, as a guest of honour at a gala celebration. Also present were SoftBank Group chief executive officer Masayoshi Son and Arm Holdings boss Rene Haas, according a statement on Wednesday by Foxconn.

It was an uncommon trip for Williams, whose last public appearance in Taiwan was in 2017 for the 30th anniversary celebration of Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company, Apple's primary chips supplier.

The occasion was also a rare moment for Taiwan to host so many leaders from the global tech industry at a single event. Foreign executives often opt for low-key visits to Taiwan so as to avoid a reaction from mainland China, which claims the island as part of its territory.

Jeff Williams, chief operating officer of Apple, spoke to customers at the company’s store in Palo Alto, California, earlier this month. Photo: Bloomberg

Williams is among Apple’s most senior executives under CEO Tim Cook, who has not visited Taiwan in an official capacity in more than a decade of leading the company.

Cook makes regular trips to mainland China, which hosts Apple’s key production base and is one of the firm’s largest markets. But he has mostly avoided Taiwan, and he last made a public appearance on the island in 2008 for Foxconn founder Terry Gou Tai-ming's wedding.

Foxconn said Cook, Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang and Intel CEO Pat Gelsinger all sent pre-recorded tributes to the closed-door event on Tuesday.

Gou also made his first high-profile appearance in months at the gala, following the ending of his bid for Taiwan’s presidency late last year.

Foxconn founder Terry Gou at an event in Kinmen, Taiwan, last August. Photo: Bloomberg

Gou, who stepped down as Foxconn chairman in 2019 and resigned as a board member last September, remains the company’s largest shareholder and is still reverentially referred to by company executives as “the Founder”.

In late November, he abandoned his latest attempt to become Taiwan’s president after failing to broker a deal to unite the island’s fractious opposition ahead of January elections, and largely vanished from view, though he did visit a temple last month.

Taiwan’s Vice-Premier Cheng Wen-tsan and Minister of Economic Affairs Wang Mei-hua joined Foxconn’s celebrations, with company chairman Liu Young-way hosting the event.

Liu said the celebration was for Gou.

“Tonight, we are among friends who are long-time customers and suppliers,” the company statement cited Liu as saying. “This evening is for you. It is Terry’s evening.”

Foxconn chairman Liu Young-way spoke to the media ahead of the company’s gala dinner in Taipei on Tuesday. Photo: Bloomberg

Formally known as Hon Hai Precision Industry, Foxconn is a mainstay in Apple’s production and assembly chain, helping to navigate challenges like the logistics and supply snarls caused by the pandemic.

Apple has leaned on Foxconn and other Taiwanese electronics contract manufacturing partners more recently to shift some iPhone assembly to India, as it grapples with how to diversify its supply chain in the face of escalating US tech restrictions on mainland China.

SoftBank’s Son and Foxconn’s Gou have been long-time business partners. Foxconn helped assemble SoftBank’s humanoid robot Pepper, though that project eventually faltered.