GTAdvancedTechnologies
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Apple's would-be sapphire glass supplier charged with fraud
Not that long ago, Apple was going to build iPhone screens using sapphire glass, but that didn't work out so well. It loaned $578 million to a company called GT Advanced Technologies, which was supposed to build highly scratch-resistant screen covers from synthetic sapphire crystals. Instead, it produced flawed "boules" of sapphire that couldn't be cut into displays and went bankrupt months after it started. Now, the SEC has announced that it's charging the company and its ex-CEO with fraud for allegedly withholding key information from stockholders.
Apple to build manufacturing facility in Arizona, create 2,000 jobs in the process
It's no secret that Apple's investing in stateside manufacturing, considering its jet engine-like Mac Pro is being assembled in the great state of Texas, but it looks like Cupertino is getting even more serious about building things in the US. Arizona has just announced that Cook and friends will be opening their latest manufacturing facility in Mesa. The center is expected to create at least 700 jobs in its first year, and another 1,300 spots for construction workers. There's no peep from either camp on what exactly the plant will churn out, but a company by the name of GT Advanced Technologies is talking. The outfit's revealed that it'll help Apple produce a sapphire material in the state. Since iPhone cameras and the Touch ID sensor each use sapphire glass, its likely the factory will be providing parts for those specific components. Update: Apple's given us a statement regarding its future digs in the Copper State, and it turns out the complex will be completely powered by renewable energy from the day it opens. Head past the break for the firm's note.
