• Foxconn has ended Monarch Tractor production after selling its Ohio factory to SoftBank, shifting its focus away from EV manufacturing.
  • Monarch has a 12-month inventory buffer and plans to announce new manufacturing partners soon.
  • The Ohio factory will now support SoftBank’s AI-related Stargate project, in collaboration with OpenAI and Oracle, as the last Foxconn vehicle contracts come to an end.

Foxconn will no longer produce electric tractors for California-based Monarch Tractor following the sale of its Lordstown, Ohio factory to SoftBank, bringing an abrupt end to their manufacturing partnership.

Monarch CEO Praveen Penmetsa confirmed the development, assuring customers that the company had worked with Foxconn to build up inventory ahead of the deal and that there should be enough vehicles and parts to meet demand for the next 12 months.

The Ohio plant, a former General Motors facility, was purchased by Foxconn from Lordstown Motors in 2022 and was pitched as a critical hub for electric vehicle manufacturing.

Monarch was the factory’s last remaining customer after earlier projects with Lordstown Motors, Fisker Inc., and IndiEV all ended in bankruptcy and minimal production.

Foxconn assembled a few hundred tractors for Monarch, but broader ambitions failed to materialise amid sector shakeouts and Monarch’s struggles, including layoffs and pivots as key markets like California’s wine industry slowed.

With the factory now under SoftBank’s ownership, the facility is expected to be used for Stargate, an AI hardware project involving OpenAI and Oracle.

Looking ahead, Monarch plans to announce new manufacturing partnerships soon to ensure the continued rollout of its autonomous, electric tractors.

Penmetsa pledged that more Monarch-enabled products would hit the market, even as the company adjusts to major supply chain changes.

Edited by Annette George