Apple Announces $500 Million Commitment to Buying American Magnets

[MacRumors]

Apple today announced a $500 million multi-year commitment to buying American-made rare earth magnets developed by MP Materials, at a state-of-the-art factory in Fort Worth, Texas. Apple said the commitment is part of its overall pledge to spend more than $500 billion in the U.S. within the next four years, which it announced in February.

Apple and MP Materials will build out the Texas factory with a series of neodymium magnet manufacturing lines specifically designed for Apple products, the company said. Today, nearly all magnets across Apple devices are made with 100% recycled rare earth elements, including in the Taptic Engine in the iPhone 11 and newer.

The two companies will also work together to build a rare earth recycling line in Mountain Pass, California, according to the announcement.

"American innovation drives everything we do at Apple, and we're proud to deepen our investment in the U.S. economy," said Apple CEO Tim Cook, in a statement. "Rare earth materials are essential for making advanced technology, and this partnership will help strengthen the supply of these vital materials here in the United States."

Apple said its commitment will support dozens of new U.S. jobs in manufacturing and R&D.

Note: Due to the political or social nature of the discussion regarding this topic, the discussion thread is located in our Political News forum. All forum members and site visitors are welcome to read and follow the thread, but posting is limited to forum members with at least 100 posts.

Article Link: Apple Announces $500 Million Commitment to Buying American Magnets

 

[Porco]

It sounds like a very attractive deal.

 

[applesith]

This investment in the US is good news! It's interesting this will only support dozens of jobs, but the $500M in investment in the US sounds good. Every bit of investment back home helps.

 

[Godspeed8230]

"Dozens of new U.S. jobs"

 

[wanha]

This investment in the US is good news! It's interesting this will only support dozens of jobs, but the $500B in investment in the US sounds good. Every bit of investment back home helps.

the commitment here is for $500 million, time will tell on the $500 billion

 

[Apple Knowledge Navigator]

These will attract a lot of customers.

 

[JapanApple]

I read this in the business bylines. Quite interesting in fact. As long as Apple uses mag devices makes sense for them to do this type of investment. And when the time is right, and this is no longer usable, they’ll sell it.

 

[wanha]

Everything about this reads like a desperate attempt to appease Trump

 

[Joe Rossignol]

it's $500 million, not $500 billion

$500M within an overall $500B pledge.

 

[Lone Deranger]

Let's coin this 'Orange nosing'.

Also, no one does polar opposites better than the US, so I guess it's fitting.

 

[wanha]

$500M within an overall $500B pledge.

that's exactly my point, no one really knows what a "pledge" actually means in this context

(basically, the difference between "pledge" and "commit")

 

[maerz001]

Congrats.
The next deal for highly engineered jobs will come from paper and cardboard for the packaging, plastic wrap for display and the polishing cloth

 

[krull1015]

No Tariffs for Apple 🎉🥳👏🎊

 

[macjoshua]

Sounds like another attempt to appease Trump again. I’m not buying another Apple product until bootlicker Cook is out of his job.

 

[IIGS User]

Too obscure?

Someone up thread stated this sounded like a weak attempt to appease the Trump administration. I don't doubt that. Corporate leaders are weasels on par with politicians. Tim Cook especially. But that's the name of the game. The auto makers did it under Biden. Now Stellantis is just about shelving their electric car ambitions (for now) and putting a near 20 year old engine design back into cars and pickup trucks. Partly because well, people want them and in the end selling things and making a profit is what business is all about. But also they're not trying to please an administration that was making a big electric vehicle push.

Corporations have done this throughout the modern age.

Not to go off topic, but as far as electric cars go, I think the technology has one more generation to go, and the infrastructure needs another round of SOLID innovation and technological maturation before the adoption rates rival ICE vehicles. It will take time, but in the long run I think the EV's will win out in the marketplace as opposed to being forced on people.

I'm shopping for a new vehicle now. I tow, so it's a full size truck and it will be one with an 8 cylinder in it. I'm old, set in my ways, and want nothing to do with the smaller turbo engines just yet. No rationalization to it. It's just not what I want.

 

[BJMRamage]

Everything about this reads like a desperate attempt to appease Trump

yep...Apple commits $500MM for US-based Magnets with a pledge to invest $500B within the next four years....dozens of jobs.

I wonder if part of the $500B is spent in the US on actors/actresses and the TV+ programming?

 

[jooish]

Everything about this reads like a desperate attempt to appease Trump

It sounds like you'd prefer money be spent elsewhere... at least until Trump is out of office.


Do I understand you correctly?

 

[WarmWinterHat]

It sounds like you'd prefer money be spent elsewhere... at least until Trump is out of office.


Do I understand you correctly?

I'd prefer it not be spent at all, other than for R&D or dividends...but all things considered, I guess this is fine.

 

[klasma]

These will attract a lot of customers.

Not to the iPhone 16e, though.

 

[neuropsychguy]

I'd prefer it not be spent at all, other than for R&D or dividends...but all things considered, I guess this is fine.

Apple shouldn’t spend any money for the next 3.5 years?

 

[klasma]

Everything about this reads like a desperate attempt to appease Trump

"We think he's going to love it!"

 

[StoneJack]

make American Magnets Great again!

 

[iToph]

Hey Siri, buy me some magnets.

 

[WarmWinterHat]

Apple shouldn’t spend any money for the next 3.5 years?

..on things like this, which is clearly orange-washing.

Or, like I said, on r&d or dividends.

 

[PBG4 Dude]

This isn’t new for Apple though; Steve Jobs worked with Corning to create the glass face for the new iPhone. All of that glass ships from a Kentucky plant.

https://www.cnbc.com/2019/02/08/how-apple-iphone-gorilla-glass-is-made-corning-factory.html