Apple Expands Houston Plant to 500,000 SF, Market briefs

In Houston., Apple will begin producing Mac mini computers for the first time in the U.S. as part of an expansion of its Houston manufacturing operations.

Apple, which last year reported a 250,000-SF Houston facility, said the new Mac mini factory will double its Houston manufacturing footprint. The local operations, which include assembling servers using logic boards produced onsite, are situated along Fairbanks North Houston Road in northwest Houston. Mac mini is a compact but powerful desktop computer measuring just 5 by 5 inches that plugs into a consumer’s monitor, keyboard, and mouse.

“Apple is deeply committed to the future of American manufacturing, and we’re proud to significantly expand our footprint in Houston with the production of Mac mini starting later this year,” Apple CEO Tim Cook said in a news release. “We began shipping advanced AI servers from Houston ahead of schedule, and we’re excited to accelerate that work even further.”

In the last year, technology manufacturing and assembly has surged in an area near the Sam Houston Race Park horse track and Fairbanks North Houston Road and Beltway 8 with new facilities by Apple, the Nvidia semiconductor firm and Taiwan-based tech manufacturer Foxconn Corp.

Apple Also Constructing Training Center

In a press release, Apple reported it will provide hands-on training at its new Advanced Manufacturing Center and increase manufacturing capacity for advanced AI servers and at the Houston complex. The servers play a key role in powering Apple Intelligence and are the foundation of Private Cloud Compute, the tech company’s cloud intelligence system designed for private AI processing.

Construction is already in progress on the 20,000-SF Advanced Manufacturing Center that is slated to open this year. The center “will provide hands-on training in advanced manufacturing techniques to students, supplier employees, and American businesses,” as stated by Apple. The company recently opened a training center in the Detroit area and developed curriculum in conjunction with Michigan State University faculty.

The initiatives are part of a $600 billion investment by Apple to bring more of its supply chain and advanced manufacturing to the U.S. The Houston operations are slated to create thousands of jobs.

Apple, which is based in California, reported a major expansion of new manufacuring facilities in the United States. Photo: courtesy Apple.

Since announcing its $600 billion commitment to the U.S. last year, Apple and its American Manufacturing Program partners have already reached several milestones:

• Apple exceeded its target and sourced more than 20 billion U.S.-made chips from 24 factories across 12 states, including those of partners like TSMC, Broadcom, and Texas Instruments.

• GlobalWafers has begun production at its new $4 billion bare silicon wafer facility in Sherman, Texas. At Apple’s direction, wafers produced in Sherman will be used by Apple’s chip manufacturing partners in the U.S., including TSMC and Texas Instruments.

• Supported by Apple’s investment, Amkor started work on its new $7 billion semiconductor advanced packaging and test facility in Peoria, Arizona, where Apple will be the first and largest customer.

• Corning’s Harrodsburg, Kentucky, facility is now 100 percent dedicated to cover glass for iPhone and Apple Watch shipped globally, and by the end of this year, every new iPhone and Apple Watch will have cover glass made in the state.

• In 2026, Apple is on track to purchase well over 100 million advanced chips produced by TSMC at its Arizona facility, a significant increase from 2025.