Racing ahead in Apple’s supply chain, Tata Electronics’ rapid hiring surge reshapes India’s manufacturing landscape, briefly surpassing Foxconn as iPhone production scales sharply nationwide.
Tata Electronics has expanded its workforce to around 75,000 employees, overtaking Foxconn in India to become the largest contract manufacturing partner for Apple in the country by headcount, according to a report published on April 30, 2026.
The growth, reported by The Economic Times, marks a sharp increase from roughly 15,000 employees in 2023. The expansion has been driven primarily by the company’s 500-acre (equivalent to 202.34 hectares) manufacturing facility in Hosur, Tamil Nadu, where production has been scaled up to meet rising global demand for iPhones.
Sources cited in the report said the company’s hiring surge reflects efforts to achieve the scale required for global electronics manufacturing services while adhering to Apple’s operational standards.
The workforce now includes employees across its Hosur operations as well as facilities acquired from Pegatron and Wistron.
However, neither Tata Electronics nor Apple has officially commented on the development.
Despite the milestone, Foxconn may regain its lead once its Devanahalli facility becomes fully operational later this year, according to industry sources.
Industry analysts view the development as significant given Tata Electronics’ relatively recent entry into the sector in 2020. Reaching this workforce scale positions the company to move towards higher-value segments of the electronics supply chain, although it remains at an early stage in an industry historically dominated by East Asian manufacturers.
Analysts also noted that India’s expanding electronics ecosystem, supported by a growing skilled workforce, policy incentives and increasing localisation, is enabling such growth.
However, further progress will depend on deeper localisation, supply chain resilience, and improvements in quality and production yields.
The expansion coincides with Apple’s increasing manufacturing footprint in India. iPhone exports from the country reached an estimated $23 billion in 2025, driven by global demand and supported by government incentives to boost domestic production.
