WASHINGTON: Apple said on Monday (Feb 24) that it will spend more than US$500 billion in the United States over the next four years and hire 20,000 staff, an announcement likely to please President Donald Trump who has pushed US companies to shift manufacturing home.
"Apple today announced its largest-ever spend commitment, with plans to spend and invest more than US$500 billion in the US over the next four years," the Silicon Valley-based tech giant said in a statement.
Apple's CEO Tim Cook said: "We are bullish on the future of American innovation, and we're proud to build on our long-standing US investments with this US$500 billion commitment to our country's future."
The figure includes everything from purchases from US suppliers to US filming of television shows and movies for its Apple TV+ service.
The company declined to say how much of the figure it was already planning to spend with its existing US supply base, which includes firms such as Corning, which makes glass for iPhones in Kentucky.
Apple said it would also hire around 20,000 staff, mostly focused on research and development, silicon engineering, software development, and AI and machine learning.
It plans to open a new manufacturing facility in Houston, Texas, in 2026 that will assemble servers that "play a key role in powering Apple Intelligence" - part of the company's AI products - and would create "thousands of jobs".
An Apple Manufacturing Academy in Detroit is also on the cards to "help companies transition to advanced manufacturing".
Monday's announcement comes days after Trump said that Apple plans to invest "hundreds of billions of dollars" in the United States as he trumpeted the success of his tariff plan in boosting the American economy.
The Republican president has wielded tariffs - customs duties on imported goods - as a trade weapon, slapping 10 per cent levies on goods from China and threatening them on products including semiconductors, cars and pharmaceuticals.
His administration argues the higher costs will encourage companies to manufacture in the United States instead. Critics argue that tariffs could raise prices for consumers.
Apple's suppliers already manufacture silicon in 24 factories across 12 states, including Arizona, Colorado, Oregon, and Utah.
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