Apple Continues Investment Kick With $45 Million To iPhone's Glass-Maker

A few weeks ago, Apple announced plans to make $430 billion in investments in the United States over the next five years. While a good portion of that money is going toward its own business, whether that's building new campuses or funding shows that will appear on Apple TV+, the company also said that it would invest in its manufacturing partners by way of its Advanced Manufacturing Fund. Today, it detailed the $45 million investment its making in Corning.

Corning, as many smartphone enthusiasts already know, manufactures glass panels for smartphones, and is best known for its Gorilla Glass brand. iPhones have used glass made by Corning since the first-generation iPhone launched in 2007, so the fact that Apple considers Corning a close partner worth investing in isn't much of a surprise.

Apple says that this $45 million investment will allow Corning to expand manufacturing capacity across the US and fund research and development of "innovative new technologies that support durability and long-lasting product life." This is just the latest in a string of investments Apple has made in Corning, saying that the Advanced Manufacturing Fund has invested $450 million in the company over the past four years.

Some of that investment cash went toward the development of Ceramic Shield, a glass-ceramic display cover that made its debut on the iPhone 12 lineup. It was only a few days ago that the Advanced Manufacturing Fund made a $410 million investment into another Apple partner named II-VI, which produces the laser tech used in the iPhone's Face ID and LiDAR Scanner. That particular investment will help II-IV increase its manufacturing capacity across the country.

So, the Advanced Manufacturing Fund is firing off investments at a pretty decent clip. Given the plans Apple detailed at the end of April, we'll probably hear about more investments in the near future, so we'll let you know when Apple's Advanced Manufacturing Fund makes its next move.