Apple has been making moves to reverse its declining sales following a 7.1 million down of Apple products sales this year. The tech company's new hub for its hardware development is estimated to $45 million. The research center is set to open its facility in Zhongguancun Science Park in Beijing.
The company's first hub for hardware research will employ about 500 employees. It is also Apple's first research center in China. Apple CEO Tim Cook has visited China twice this year and had meetings with their top government officials. The company has also invested to China's version of Uber, Didi Chuxing that amounted to $1 billion, reported by CNBC.
Zhongguancun Science Park in Beijing is similar to Silicon Valley in San Francisco Bay Area. Its Administrative Committee announced on social media their statement, "In the future, this R&D center will be dedicated to researching and developing in the areas of computer hardware and software, telecommunications, video and audio equipment, consumer electronic products, information technology and other advanced technologies."
Apple's attempt to increase its revenue has been recently shown in their investments on developing new facilities. This R&D facility aims to prove Apple's effort to continue its relationship in China. The country has been the base of Apple's products' manufacturing and also a big and important market for its revenue. Despite the sliding down of sales this year, CEO Tim Cook stated in August that Apple is "very optimistic about the long-term opportunities in Greater China", according to The Verge. As of the moment, Apple has yet to comment on the said matter.
Apple has recently shutdown its iBooks and movie services in China. The giant tech company's investment will boost the economy of China and will create new opportunities for employment, said by the committee of Zhongguancun. According to Wall Street Journal, the leaders of China aims to increase its economy with the manufacturing industry and also to push the advanced research development technologies.
