Taipei, Nov. 17 (CNA) Leading Taiwan-based tech brand Asustek Computer Inc. is planning to set up a production line in the United States, with mass production scheduled for 2024.
In a statement Thursday, Asustek confirmed that it will assemble semi-finished products for server production in the facility planned for Silicon Valley at a time of booming opportunities worldwide created by advances in artificial intelligence applications.
Asustek did not disclose any financial terms of the Silicon Valley investment.
The company's statement came after a Nikkei Asia report, which cited Asustek Senior Vice President Jackie Hsu (許祐嘉) as saying his company will take advantage of the growing opportunities from "the new era of AI-powered computing" to attract more customers.
"We just kicked off our U.S. production project in Silicon Valley, where we aim to assemble some semi-finished parts for our growing server system business. That will help us to be close to our customers in North America," Hsu was quoted as saying in the report.
"For servers, we think having some manufacturing capacity close to market will be helpful for our business development," Hsu said. "Some server customers would want suppliers to have production close by."
At an investor conference Monday, Asustek co-CEO S.Y. Hsu (許先越) highlighted the importance of AI-related products to its growth.
Hsu expected AI PC development to spark a rebound in personal computer demand and AI servers to account for more than 50 percent of its total server revenue next year.
Asustek is building up its capacity elsewhere, according to the Nikkei Asia report, including a facility in Taoyuan in northern Taiwan to roll out motherboards, graphics cards, mini PCs and server-related products, with commercial production also slated for 2024.
In addition, it is studying the possibility of setting up assembly lines in Europe and other locations in response to client demand, the Nikkei Asia report said.
Meanwhile, a report by Reuters said Thursday that China's Lenovo Group Ltd., the largest PC vendor in the world, filed a lawsuit against Asustek with a California federal court Wednesday.
It accused its Taiwanese rival of infringing on four of its patents related to wireless communications, diagonal touchpad scrolling, and a hinge that allows a laptop to convert to a tablet configuration.
The Reuters report said the features suspected of infringing on the patents were found in Asustek's Zenbook Pro and Zenbook Flip 14 laptops.
Lenovo has requested an unspecified amount of financial damages for lost profits and royalties as well as a court order permanently blocking the infringement, the report said.
Asustek said the company's policy is not to comment on any ongoing lawsuit.
In a statement posted on the Taiwan Stock Exchange, where Asustek shares are traded, the Taiwanese brand said that while it would not comment on any ongoing lawsuit, it would rely on the law to protect its interests.
