Apple, Foxconn considering joint investment in $7 billion U.S. display factory

A new display facility would rely on automation to make large display panels.

Foxconn Chairman Tarry Gou says that the company is considering a joint investment with Apple in a new display manufacturing facility in the United States. The facility would apparently cost around $7 billion and be "highly automated".

From Nikki Asian Review:

"Apple is willing to invest in the facility together because they need the [panels] as well," Gou told reporters after the company's annual year-end party in the Nankang district of Taipei. The U.S. production site eventually would create 30,000 to 50,000 jobs, the Taiwanese tycoon said.

Foxconn is also considering moving a display startup, Smart Technologies, from Canada to the U.S. following the inauguration of President Donald Trump, who has previously indicated that he will pursue a major increase in U.S.-based manufacturing. However, Gou is skeptical that the American public will want to pay the increased prices that would come from consumer electronics being made in the U.S.