The term OEM is abbreviated as Original Equipment Manufacturer refers to any product or part that is specifically designed and produced to fit an original product. This term is mostly used in the computer and automobile industry referencing all the parts constituting the final product. Initially, it was associated with a company that manufactured a product which was then resold or re-branded by another company. However, the meaning of this term has evolved over time, and today it refers to different things. For instance, OEM can reference a company that manufactures the actual components used by another company to build a whole system. In other instances, the company re-brands another company’s products and sells them to end-users.

A perfect example is Foxconn, which manufactures a variety of parts and equipment for companies such as Apple, Dell, Google, Huawei, Xiaomi, and more, is the largest OEM company in the world by both scale and revenue. However, they do not do any R&D nor design work for these products.