Google started to get serious about competing in the market as a hardware company last year. The company has since released a handful of smartphones and smart devices. It shows no signs of slowing down. According to a new report, Google has put together a new hardware team that’s going to be based in Shanghai. It has reportedly hired ex-Apple and Amazon employees to man this team.
The Information reports that Google is building up this new hardware team which is going to be based in Shanghai. The company had close to 20 engineers in Shanghai at this time last year and now it has nearly 150. The team is reportedly going to develop new smartphones and Home products.
The ex-Apple and Amazon workers that have been hired by Google are said to have “experience in hardware and supply chain management.” Both are crucial key focus areas for a hardware company. The report mentions that this team is also going to work on devices like the Pixelbook, Daydream VR headsets as well as wearable devices.
Even though this team is going to be based in Shanghai, Google doesn’t have plans to sell its hardware in the country for now. It’s reportedly using Shanghai as a base to develop relationships with manufacturing companies in the area in order to effectively expand its hardware business globally.