Apple pledges $500 billion toward US economy, will add 20K jobs as Trump tariffs loom

Apple said Monday it would “spend and invest” $500 billion toward the US economy – a move that comes as the Tim Cook-led tech giant looks to dodge the impact of President Trump’s tariffs.

The Cupertino, Calif.-based company said the plan stretches over the next four years and marks its “largest-ever spend commitment.” The company will hire 20,000 new employees and build a new manufacturing facility in Houston that will build AI servers to power AI features on devices like the iPhone.

“We are bullish on the future of American innovation, and we’re proud to build on our longstanding US investments,” Cook said in a statement.

Aside from the Houston facility, Apple said it would build an academy in Detroit “to train the next generation of US manufacturers,” boost investments in US-based research and development projects and double its “advanced manufacturing fund” to $10 billion.

The company will expand data center capacity in North Carolina, Iowa, Oregon, Arizona and Nevada.

Shares of Apple were flat in early trading after the announcement.

Trump has suggested that Apple is seeking some kind of exemption from his tariff plans.

After a meeting with Cook at the White House last week, the president said that the Apple CEO had “stopped two plants in Mexico” and shifted its plans to US-based facilities because “they don’t want to be in the tariffs.”

Trump recently imposed an additional 10% tariff on all products imported from China, where Apple manufactures most of its iPhones and other products. The president has also teased the possibility of a 25% “and higher” tariff on the computer chips used in smartphones, laptops and more.

Apple did not say how much of that $500 billion figure it had already planned to spend. In 2021, the company announced it would spend $430 billion within the US over a half-decade span. It made a similar announcement in 2018 during Trump’s first term in office.

Gil Luria, an analyst at DA Davidson, said it was “unclear whether this announcement represents an acceleration in spend.”

“This pledge represents a political gesture towards the Trump administration,” Luria added.

Apple’s latest actions are a “smart strategic move at the right time,” according to Wedbush analyst Dan Ives, who maintained his “outperform” rating for the company’s stock.

“Cook continues to prove that he is 10% politician and 90% CEO and times like this he will be using his strong ties globally to make sure its smoother waters for Cupertino ahead despite the market agita around AAPL’s growth initiatives with Trump heading down the tariff threat path,” Ives said in a note to clients.

With Post wires