"What about disassembling 1k dongles?"

deadass this literally what they do in china, they just disassemble e-waste that don't get used and resell that oversees

A relative bought several products from Chinese company for a small product development. When he found the most suited device he asked if they'd sell without the enclosure, and maybe 1-2 other boards. They told him at 1000 pcs the best option was to buy them and toss the enclosure.