Apple announced Monday it will invest more than $1 billion to construct a new campus and engineering hub in North Carolina.
Apple said it expects the new campus in Raleigh’s Research Triangle area will create at least 3,000 new jobs in machine learning, artificial intelligence and software engineering. When it is finished, it is forecast the campus will generate more than $1.5 billion of economic benefits annually for North Carolina.
“Apple’s decision to build a new campus in Wake County showcases many of best things about North Carolina — our world-class universities, tech-ready workforce and welcoming communities that make our state one a great place to live and work,“ Gov. Roy Cooper said in a tweet Monday.
The new campus will be the first built by Apple in the United States in over 20 years.
“Innovation has long been North Carolina’s calling card and Apple’s decision to build this new campus in the Research Triangle showcases the importance of our state’s favorable business climate, world-class universities, our tech-ready workforce, and the welcoming and diverse communities that make so many people want to call North Carolina home,” Cooper said in a statement.
Apple said it will also create a $100 million fund to support schools and community initiatives in the greater Raleigh-Durham area and across the state. In addition, the company will contribute over $110 million in infrastructure spending to the 80 North Carolina counties with the greatest need. These funds will go toward broadband, roads and bridges and public schools.
“This announcement will benefit communities across our state and we are proud to work together to continue to grow our economy and bring transformational industries and good paying jobs to North Carolina,” the governor said.
On Monday night, Cooper will deliver his third State of the State address to talk about how the state is faring after the COVID-19 pandemic and gove his vision for a post-pandemic economic recovery.
Last month, the
North Carolina is one of only 13 states whose GOs are rated triple-A by Moody’s Investors Service, S&P Global Ratings and Fitch Ratings.
Apple also announced plans Monday to raise its investment levels by 20% across other parts of the United States to over $430 billion in the next five years, up from the company’s original five-year goal of $350 billion set in 2018. About 20,000 new jobs are expected to be created across the nation. Apple has also surpassed its 2018 city hiring commitments in Miami, New York, Pittsburgh, and Portland, Oregon.
“At this moment of recovery and rebuilding, Apple is doubling down on our commitment to U.S. innovation and manufacturing with a generational investment reaching communities across all 50 states,” Tim Cook, Apple’s CEO, said in a statement.
