Apple to Invest $500 Billion in U.S. as Trump Tariffs Loom

Days after its chief executive met with President Trump, Apple said on Monday that it planned to spend $500 billion in the United States over the next four years, hire 20,000 people and open a new factory in Texas to make the machines that power the company’s push into artificial intelligence.“We are bullish on the future of American innovation, and we’re proud to build on our longstanding U.S.investments,” Tim Cook, Apple’s chief executive, said in a statement.Mr.

Cook met with President Trump last week.After that meeting, Mr.

Trump said that the company would shift production to the United States: “They’re going to build here instead because they don’t want to pay the tariffs,” Mr.Trump said in a speech to a gathering of governors.Most iPhones are manufactured in China by the Taiwanese electronics giant Foxconn.

Earlier this month, U.S.tariffs of 10 percent on all Chinese products took effect.

Levies on imports from Canada, Mexico and other major trading partners could be imposed in the coming weeks.Foxconn has spent millions of dollars over the past two years building up its operations outside of China, including in Texas, and in Mexico, where the company already assembles A.I.servers.

The company’s chairman previously said that this expanded footprint would help insulate Foxconn against U.S.tariffs.Apple said it would begin assembling advanced servers “previously manufactured outside the U.S.” at a new, 250,000-square-foot facility in Houston.

The facility is slated to open next year, Apple said, and “will create thousands of jobs.” As the company rolls out A.I.features in its devices, it also plans to expand its data center operations in Arizona, Iowa, Nevada, North Carolina and Oregon.Apple described its announcement on Monday as its “largest-ever spend commitment.” The $500 billion would go toward manufacturing facilities, data centers, entertainment productions and other initiatives, the company said.

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