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Apple to Spend 1 Billion Euros on Munich Silicon Design Center Expansion

Terrible stock photo for that one.

Actually one particularly large and ironic elephant in the room is that I guarantee that all the Apple IC designers out there are doing it on Windows because all the design software is on Windows.

It wouldn't look as sexy as the marketing facade when reality hits...

torex-semiconductors-84140-hero-1280x720.jpg
 
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Kierkegaarden said:
Why the focus on Germany for this r&d — does anyone know?
Click to expand...
It's got the largest economy and the best engineers in Europe, so it makes sense to set up shop there. ✌

...and realistically, where else could they go that's got a large enough talent pool? France? All they could look forward to is higher taxes, protests, and overpriced bouillabaisse. :p
 
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coffeemilktea said:
It's got the largest economy and the best engineers in Europe, so it makes sense to set up shop there. ✌

...and realistically, where else could they go that's got a large enough talent pool? France? All they could look forward to is higher taxes, protests, and overpriced bouillabaisse. :p
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It absolutely doesn't. German economy is shrinking, taxes are way too high, salaries are inflated and there is way too much bureaucracy and red tape for companies to operate smoothly. The myth about Germany being some kind of juggernaut when it comes to innovation and research needs to stop. It would much cheaper and offer much better result to move Apple's R&D department to Eastern or Southern European countries. Germany will collapse in the next years.
 
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CausticSoda said:
Alongside Germany, for example... Good one!View attachment 2167082
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alquemir said:
It absolutely doesn't. German economy is shrinking, taxes are way too high, salaries are inflated and there is way too much bureaucracy and red tape for companies to operate smoothly. The myth about Germany being some kind of juggernaut when it comes to innovation and research needs to stop. It would much cheaper and offer much better result to move Apple's R&D department to Eastern or Southern European countries. Germany will collapse in the next years.
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Yet one of the biggest tech companies in the world disagrees with you. When you have a billion dollars to spend on an R&D hub, you do it in Eastern or Southern Europe.
 
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www.bbc.co.uk

UK expected to be only major economy to shrink in 2023 - IMF - BBC News

Even sanctions-hit Russia is expected to grow this year, but the IMF says the UK is "on the right track".
www.bbc.co.uk www.bbc.co.uk

Rather it looks like the UK is the only large economy ecpected to shrink this year - according to the BBC. Either way, those empty supermarket shelves don't look very encouraging (nothing like that on the continent), even if it's just a temporary condition. Since Brexit the UK has definitely lost attractivity for foreign workers.
 
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hagar said:
Yet one of the biggest tech companies in the world disagrees with you. When you have a billion dollars to spend on an R&D hub, you do it in Eastern or Southern Europe.
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What do you mean Apple disagrees with me? Apple neither agrees nor disagrees with me. You made a statement which according to Reuters just six days ago is factually incorrect (and humiliatingly cites Germany, disproving your statement). It is as simple as that. I could go on about Apple investments such as the huge new HQ at the Battersea Power Station in London (2022), but I sense there is no point, and I am not trying to make a UK vs Germany / EU argument. I just wish those who do might at least check basic facts before posting lazy assumptions.
 
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jonnysods said:
From that photo it looks like a lot of the investment goes into decor! That's a pretty intense room, and it makes my back hurt watching that guy work like that!
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I don’t know, why the author of the article picked that picture, but that’s an anechoic chamber. They are used to do acoustic and radio wave experiments and measurements. The pyramidical foam pieces on the walls perfectly absorb and dissipate sound and electromagnetic waves. Because they are no reflections of either off the walls, it makes the limited space behave like the experiment is performed in infinite open space.
 
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Kierkegaarden said:
Why the focus on Germany for this r&d — does anyone know?
Click to expand...
Because of German engineers and their education. Outstanding Universities nearby. Great beer and food.

For Apple by far the best location in Europe. Munich is the EU or German central for many other giants like Google, Microsoft and Amazon.
 
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CausticSoda said:
What do you mean Apple disagrees with me? Apple neither agrees nor disagrees with me. You made a statement which according to Reuters just six days ago is factually incorrect (and humiliatingly cites Germany, disproving your statement). It is as simple as that. I could go on about Apple investments such as the huge new HQ at the Battersea Power Station in London (2022), but I sense there is no point, and I am not trying to make a UK vs Germany / EU argument. I just wish those who do might at least check basic facts before posting lazy assumptions.
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Apple disagrees with you as they decided to build their billion dollar R&D hub in Germany, not in Eastern or southern Europe. As for your new comment: It’s great they are building new offices for their UK workers in London, but that’s nothing compared to this newly announced R&D investment. Access to a population of 447million habitants which can freely travel, EU R&D funds and the hightech industry make this a good move for Apple, far more logical than concentrating everything in the UK, which has cut itself off from the EU.
 
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Danfango said:
Terrible stock photo for that one.

Actually one particularly large and ironic elephant in the room is that I guarantee that all the Apple IC designers out there are doing it on Windows because all the design software is on Windows.

It wouldn't look as sexy as the marketing facade when reality hits...

torex-semiconductors-84140-hero-1280x720.jpg
Click to expand...
What stock photo are you referring to?

The photo I see shows a wireless or audio testing lab which usually look exactly like this one.
 
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Kierkegaarden said:
Why the focus on Germany for this r&d — does anyone know?
Click to expand...


Apple bought the power management IC group from Dialog ( $600M )

www.macrumors.com

Apple Acquires iPhone Power Management Technology in $600 Million Deal With Chipmaker Dialog

Apple has finalized a business agreement with Dialog Semiconductor to license its iPhone power management technology and transfer technical assets,...
www.macrumors.com www.macrumors.com

Dialog's team was mainly based where? Munich

Apple bought Infineon (Intel) smartphone modem business group ( $1B )

www.macrumors.com

Apple's Acquisition of Intel's Smartphone Modem Business Completed, Intel Admits 'Multi-Billion Dollar Loss'

Intel today announced it has completed the sale of the majority of its smartphone modem business to Apple for $1 billion following regulatory...
www.macrumors.com www.macrumors.com

[ Intel bought back in 2010 https://newsroom.intel.com/press-kits/intel-to-acquire-infineons-wireless-solutions-business/

Intel added a bigger USA labs augments to this over the interim years, but the core was never really left Germany/Europe. ]


Infineon/Intel's labs based in

" ... Apple is acquiring Intel operations that employ 4,000 people in Munich, Germany; Linz, Austria; and San Diego, Calif. ..."

[ The rest of Infineon and its non smartphone modem business is still Headquarters in a suburb of Munich ]


So if sank $1.6B into Germany anchored business it really isn't that much to drop $2B over 6 years ( ~300M/yr) to consolidate overlapping and shared R&D facilities into a centralized (walking distance) location.

Plus if there is any Germany 'CHIPs Act'-like money floating around can attract some subsidies . ( even though just designing, not making, chips. )
 
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DominikHoffmann said:
I don’t know, why the author of the article picked that picture, but that’s an anechoic chamber. They are used to do acoustic and radio wave experiments and measurements.
Click to expand...

The modem business that Apple bought from Intel (via Infineon) is based in Germany. Perhaps modem folks might want to do an experiment with a radio... maybe. :)
 
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hagar said:
They can’t even manage to keep their supermarket shelves full because of Brexit and the increase in admin.
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Oh, come on! Access to fresh vegetables off-season is hardly a disqualifier for a top-tier research facility. 😂🏴󠁧󠁢󠁥󠁮󠁧󠁿
 
Gudi said:
Oh, come on! Access to fresh vegetables off-season is hardly a disqualifier for a top-tier research facility. 😂🏴󠁧󠁢󠁥󠁮󠁧󠁿
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Yes it does, because the reason why this is happening is more administration and border control formalities as a result of brexit. The last thing a company wants is more paperwork. Employees coming from another country and being denied entrance, or employees unable to extend their visa because of the weird stuff going on in the UK with migrant workers, are major obstacles for international companies.
 
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manofthematch said:
Wait for the UK numbers. They even have problems with supply of fresh foods. Seems like Brexit was a fantastic idea. For the rest of the EU.

But UK seems to turn back to the EU silently. They just re-joinend the EU research program Horizon...
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We have a cool word for that in German: Schadenfreude

Gonna grab some popcorn from my full supermarket shelves and enjoy the comment frenzy. 💁🏼‍♂️
 
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