Wow! Apple Does Shock U-Turn, Prepares to Get Made-in-US Chips, Snub Asia
Apple Inc. is preparing to begin sourcing chips for its devices from a plant under construction in Arizona, U.S., marking a major step toward reducing the company's reliance on Asian production.
Chief Executive Officer Tim Cook made the disclosure during an internal meeting in Germany with local engineering and retail employees as part of a recent tour of Europe, according to remarks reviewed by Bloomberg News. He added that Apple may also expand its supply of chips from plants in Europe.
“We've already made a decision to be buying out of a plant in Arizona, and this plant in Arizona starts up in '24, so we've got about two years ahead of us on that one, maybe a little less,” Cook told the employees. “And in Europe, I'm sure that we will also source from Europe as those plans become more apparent,” he said at the meeting, which included Apple services chief Eddy Cue and Deirdre O'Brien, its head of retail and human resources.
Cook is likely referring to an Arizona factory that will be run by Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co., Apple's exclusive chip-manufacturing partner. That plant is slated for a 2024 opening. And TSMC is already eyeing a second US facility, part of a broader push to increase chip production in the country.
Shares of TSMC climbed as much as 2.9% in Taiwan trading Wednesday after Bloomberg News reported on Cook's remarks. Apple was little changed.
TSMC's stock surged 7.9% on Tuesday after Warren Buffett's Berkshire Hathaway Inc. disclosed it had taken a stake in the company.
Representatives for Apple and TSMC declined to comment.
Intel Corp. is also building plants in Arizona that will open as early as 2024. The chipmaker was a major Apple supplier for years, but it's unlikely to recapture that business.
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