GT Advanced Technologies, which supplies the sapphire crystal used in the camera cover and the Touch ID sensor.for Apple's iPhone devices, has announced it has filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection.
The company indicated it has $85 million in cash and is currently seeking debtor-in-possession financing, which it claims will allow it to secure additional funds. It added, "GT expects the court will authorize the company to continue to conduct business as usual while it devotes renewed efforts to resolve its current issues and develops a reorganization plan."
At the time of this writing, the stock price of GT Advanced had dropped 85 percent on the NASDAQ stock market. There's no word on how, if at all, this will affect Apple's future products, including its Apple Watch, which is scheduled to have a sapphire crystal display. There are other sapphire glass providers, however, and Apple has a lot of money to throw at production, so the answer could well be not at all.
Source: GT Advanced
