Apple has a secret lab in Taiwan. Sources say that Taiwanese engineers have been employed to work on new display technology in Longtan in northern Taiwan.
The Hsinchu Science Park management office said Apple’s Taiwan branch moved into the new office on April 15.
Sources say that Apple aims to make their products thinner, brighter and more energy-efficient. Engineers are working on better versions of the liquid-crystal displays used in their popular iPhones, iPads and Mac personal computers.
IHS DisplaySearch Vice President David Hsieh said Apple is developing its next generation of display screens. The key technologies can be found in panel producers in Japan, Korea, Taiwan and China. Apple already has R&D centers in Japan and Korea and China’s technology is not mature, so Taiwan was the obvious choice.
He said their center here will be like a small Industrial Technology Research Institute and Apple will likely recruit personnel from other local companies.
Pegatron Chairman Tung Tsu-hsien said on Wednesday that many foreign companies have been setting up R&D centers in Taiwan. He said many leaders of mobile and cloud technology have centers here, which shows how important Taiwan is to the industry.