Apple To Build New Austin, TX Campus and Opens New Locations In Thailand and France

Apple announces new billion-dollar campus in Austin, Texas and adding jobs in several US locations including Austin, Seattle, Culver City and San Diego.

In addition to its announced large expansion in Austin, TX, Apple will also be growing operations in Pittsburgh, New York and Boulder, Colorado over the next three years. Over the last year, Apple has continued to grow its American workforce, adding 6,000 jobs in 2018, for a total of 90,000 jobs in all 50 states of the United States. In 16 states, Apple employs over 1,000 employees each. The company is expected to add another 20,000 jobs in the US by 2023.

The development of the billion-dollar campus in Austin, TX and commitment to job creation in the United States, is seen by many as Apple’s thank you to the government for its tax repatriation program. Apple is paying a one-time tax of $38 billion on its overseas cash holdings. The company has endured many years of strong criticism for outsourcing manufacturing to China. By building out campuses and employing 90,000 people in the United States, Apple is demonstrating its commitment to the American economy and job creation.

“Apple is proud to bring new investment, jobs and opportunity to cities across the United States and to significantly deepen our quarter-century partnership with the city and people of Austin. Talent, creativity and tomorrow’s breakthrough ideas aren’t limited by region or zip code, and, with this new expansion, we’re redoubling our commitment to cultivating the high-tech sector and workforce nationwide.”

— Tim Cook, Apple’s CEO

The new 133-acre Austin campus will be located just less than a mile from existing facilities and will first employ 5,000 more employees, growing to 15,000 eventually. This expected growth would make Apple the largest private employer in Austin, TX. Texans including governor Greg Abbott are excited by the new initiative. Abbott called Apple one of the “world’s most innovative companies and an avid creator of jobs in Texas and across the country.” The new jobs include a range of positions from engineering and R&D to operations, finance, sales and customer support. Austin already has the largest population of Apple employees outside Cupertino at 6,200 people. The new campus will be powered by 100 percent renewable energy and include 50 acres of preserved open space.

Additional expansion plans include adding jobs for another 1,000 employees in Seattle, San Diego and Culver City as well as numerous jobs in Pittsburgh, New York, Boulder, Boston and Portland, Oregon. Apple also recently opened its newest office in Nashville, TN and is expected to double its Miami office in size. In addition to jobs, Apple is investing $10 billion in US data centers and will expand upon existing data centers. In addition to the 90,000 employees at Apple, Apple also supports an additional 2 million jobs in all 50 states through suppliers and manufacturers in the US. Apple stores are available in 44 states and the District of Columbia. They also are growing, expecting to add another 7,000 retail jobs in the next five years.

Finally, Apple’s App Store ecosystem has also helped in the creation of 1.5 million jobs.

Apple Opens New Retail Stores in Bangkok, Thailand and in Paris, France

Along the shores of the Chao Phraya, Apple’s new store in Bangkok, Thailand is Apple’s first store in the country and features the full line of Apple products. The new store titled Apple Iconsiam also provides free Today at Apple sessions. The new store has an open and airy atmosphere and is located alongside cultural landmarks and popular destinations. The store also has a tree-lined Genius Grove for personalized technical support and advice.

Apple also opened its newest retail location in France along the Champs-Élysées, the famed Parisian avenue, in a historic building with a newly renovated inner courtyard. The new store will host ongoing free Today at Apple sessions.

“I hope that everyone who visits Apple Champs-Élysées will be inspired to unlock their creative curiosity and learn something new.”

— Angela Ahrendts, Apple’s Senior VP, Retail

Apple May Soon Develop Health-Tracking AirPods While Facing Stiff Competition

Health monitoring features may be coming to Air Pods but Apple faces some stiff competition from two other tech giants keen on getting a large share of the market, Amazon and Google. While Air Pods have been used on both Apple and Android devices, the devices are designed for iPhone use, enabling Siri use.

Based on the various patents Apple has applied for pertaining to ear bud features and functionality including biometric sensors, new health-tracking AirPods could be used for detecting health data. The AirPods could possibly also integrate with the Apple Watch. Industry analysts expect that Apple may create AirPods with wireless charging support and a Bluetooth specification upgrade in early 2019.

Both Amazon and Google are working on their own consumer devices with Goertek and Unitech to create their own AirPod-like earpieces. Both tech giants offer Apple stiff competition in the space given the dominance of their individual brands and Amazon’s powerful voice assistant service. Amazon and Google versions of AirPods are expected to ship in the second half of 2019, with 10 to 20 million units. AirPods are expected to ship in large numbers in 2019, with 55 million units, then up to 80 million by 2020, and as high as 110 million AirPods shipped by 2021.

Apple Acquires 'Platoon', A UK A&R Startup for Discovering Music Artists

Apple has added Platoon, a London-based A&R startup that is focused on discovering emerging music artists, according to Music Business Worldwide.

The acquisition was also confirmed by British newspaper The Telegraph. The acquisition shows Apple’s keen interest in reaching new up and coming music artists.

Platoon was founded in 2016 by Saul Klein who previously had co-founded the British video-on-demand service LoveFilm (now defunct), and Denzyl Feigelson, who has been an advisor to Apple on iTunes and Apple Music for 16 years, and a music industry veteran for 40 years.

Platoon worked with California singer, 16-year-old Billie Eilish before she signed with Interscope in 2017. Eilish debuted her new song "Come Out And Play" as the backdrop to Apple's "Share Your Gifts" holiday ad.

At its London headquarters, Feigelson leads Platoon's team of 12 full-time employees where it has two recording studios. Platoon offers support to its artists from tour support to original content, social media marketing and global expansion strategies. As an A&R company, Platoon focus on talent scouting and helping in developing the relationship between recording artists and songwriters. A&R staff often connect artists with record labels or publishing companies.

Apple has been highlighting emerging artists through its Up Next Program that began in April 2017. Apple Music has put its weight behind developing artists with Up Next, jumpstarted with artist 6lack (aka Ricardo Valdez), a 24-year-old rapper from Atlanta, GA. As part of the program, 6lack appeared on The Late Late Show With James Corden, where he was introduced by Beats 1's Zane Lowe. Apple Music also promoted 6lack’s songs on their playlists and on the iTunes store. While the criteria for selection to the program has not been announced, 6lack was an unknown musician without any social media following or established fan base prior to his inclusion in the program.

“I may be extreme in saying that, but nobody knew who he was. And within his first week, “PRBLMS” got a million streams. That’s a metric. Within the first week, a guy that no one had heard about had the No. 3 song on the R&B charts in the [iTunes] Store, he sold 10,000 copies independently. And then, he was the No. 6 streaming song on the chart. This was back in May.”

— Carl Chery, Apple's head of Artist Curation

While no one had heard of 6lack, the first song of his that was released on Apple Music was extremely popular or as Chery said in an interview with Billboard, “on fire.”