Apple Awards iPhone Glass Supplier Corning Additional $250M From Advanced Manufacturing Fund

Apple today announced it is awarding its longtime iPhone, iPad, and Apple Watch glass supplier Corning an additional $250 million from its Advanced Manufacturing Fund, building on its $200 million award in 2017.

Apple Corning Harrodsburg Plant 400 Highly Skilled Employees 091719
The combined $450 million investment will support Corning's research and development into "state-of-the-art glass processes, equipment and materials integral to the delivery of next-generation consumer devices," including the upcoming ‌iPhone‌ 11 and ‌iPhone‌ 11 Pro lineup, according to Apple.

Apple COO Jeff Williams:

Apple and Corning's rich history dates back more than a decade, and our partnership revolutionized glass and transformed the technology industry with the first iPhone. This award underscores Apple and Corning's shared belief in the vital role that ingenuity plays in creating industry-leading products, and the pride that both companies take in applying American innovation and advanced manufacturing to solve some of the world's toughest technology challenges.

Apple says it Advanced Manufacturing Fund was designed to "foster and support the innovative production and high-skill jobs that will help fuel a new era of technology-driven manufacturing" in the United States. To date, Apple has invested over $1 billion in American companies from the fund.

In addition to the $450 million now awarded to Corning, other commitments already announced include $390 million to Finisar and $10 million to the joint venture Elysis working towards carbon-free aluminum smelting.

Apple says it spent a collective $60 billion with 9,000 American suppliers in 2018, supporting 450,000 jobs in all 50 states and manufacturing locations in 36 states. ‌iPhone‌ 11, ‌iPhone‌ 11 Pro, and iPhone 11 Pro Max use glass manufactured at Corning's factory in Harrodsburg, Kentucky.

Corning has partnered with Apple since 2007 to provide glass for every generation of the ‌iPhone‌ and Apple Watch, and many generations of the ‌iPad‌, all manufactured in the Harrodsburg facility. Since the ‌iPhone‌ launched in 2007, Apple has spent nearly $3 billion with Corning on the glass used in those devices.

Popular Stories

iPhone 17 Pro Render Front Page Tech

iPhone 17 Pro Launching Later This Year With These 10 New Features

Sunday March 23, 2025 10:00 am PDT by
While the iPhone 17 Pro and iPhone 17 Pro Max are not expected to launch until September, there are already plenty of rumors about the devices. iPhone 17 Pro's alleged design via Front Page Tech Below, we recap key changes rumored for the iPhone 17 Pro models as of March 2025: Aluminum frame: iPhone 17 Pro models are rumored to have an aluminum frame, whereas the iPhone 15 Pro and iPhone...
iCloud General Feature Redux

iPhone Users Who Pay for iCloud Storage Receive a New Perk

Thursday March 20, 2025 12:01 am PDT by
If you pay for iCloud storage on your iPhone, Apple has a new perk for you, at no additional cost. The new perk is the ability to create invitations in the Apple Invites app for the iPhone, which launched in the App Store last month. In the Apple Invites app, iCloud+ subscribers can create invitations for any occasion, such as birthday parties, graduations, baby showers, and more. Anyone ...
iOS 18

Top 5 New Features Coming in iOS 18.4

Friday March 21, 2025 3:26 pm PDT by
We're not getting new Siri Apple Intelligence features in iOS 18.4 as expected, but the upcoming update does have quite a few new additions that will be worth upgrading for. We've rounded up the five best features to look forward to, and if you're not running the beta, you can expect to get access to these in early April. Priority Notifications If you have an iPhone or iPad that supports...
Generic iOS 19 Feature Mock

iOS 19 Coming in June With These New Features

Thursday March 20, 2025 2:04 pm PDT by
While the first iOS 19 beta is still more than two months away, there are already plenty of rumors about the upcoming software update. Below, we recap the key iOS 19 rumors so far. visionOS-Like Design In January, the YouTube channel Front Page Tech revealed a redesigned Camera app that is allegedly planned for iOS 19. According to Front Page Tech host Jon Prosser, the Camera app...
Generic iOS 18

Apple Seeds iOS 18.4 and iPadOS 18.4 Release Candidate With Priority Notifications, Ambient Music and More

Monday March 24, 2025 10:07 am PDT by
Apple today seeded the release candidate versions of upcoming iOS 18.4 and iPadOS 18.4 updates to developers for testing purposes, with the software coming a week after Apple released the fourth betas. iOS 18.4 and iPadOS 18.4 can be downloaded from the Settings app on a compatible device by going to General > Software Update. With iOS 18.4, Apple is adding the Priority Notifications...
airpods max 2024 colors

Don't Buy Into Apple's Hype About AirPods Max Gaining Lossless Audio

Monday March 24, 2025 4:24 pm PDT by
Apple today announced that AirPods Max with a USB-C port will be gaining support for lossless audio and ultra-low latency audio with a firmware update next month, alongside the release of iOS 18.4, iPadOS 18.4, and macOS 15.4. For context, audio files are typically compressed to keep file sizes smaller. There are lossy compression standards like MP3, and Apple's own Advanced Audio Codec...
Foldable iPhone 2023 Feature Iridescent Search

Foldable iPhone Expected to Launch Next Year, Costing Around $2,000

Monday March 24, 2025 3:43 am PDT by
Apple will launch its long-rumored foldable iPhone next year with a ~$2,000 premium price tag attached, expects well-connected Bloomberg reporter Mark Gurman. Gurman's comments on Apple's launch plans for its first foldable device appeared in the Q&A section of his latest Power On newsletter. Earlier this month, the reporter said Apple's foldable iPhone could be arriving "as early as 2026,"...
iOS 19 Rounded UI Elements Light

iOS 19: What to Expect From Apple's Dramatic Design Overhaul?

Monday March 24, 2025 9:47 am PDT by
Earlier this month, Bloomberg reported that Apple is planning "one of the most dramatic software overhauls in the company's history" – an update that aims to bring iOS, iPadOS, and macOS into closer visual alignment. The redesign is said to be "loosely based" on visionOS, the software behind Apple's Vision Pro headset, and will reportedly update the look of icons, menus, apps, windows, and...

Top Rated Comments

Phone Junky Avatar
72 months ago
I kind of wish Apple would say their products contain gorilla glass sometimes. I can’t even count how many android fanboys I’ve seen that think that iPhone screens are brittle and delicate compared to their phones when they both use the same damn glass...
When you drop it and it breaks, it really doesn't matter what kind of glass it is.
Score: 12 Votes (Like | Disagree)
69Mustang Avatar
72 months ago
They use the same brand glass, but I’m not sure that they use the same glass. Glass in any other domain has various grades. I’m willing to bet that there are multiple grades and generations of Gorilla Glass.
I thought this was common knowledge. We're currently on Gen 6 of Gorilla Glass.
[doublepost=1568722079][/doublepost]
I don’t know if Corning makes the coating, but I would love love love to see more scratch resistant coating.

The glass can be nearly indestructible but if the outer coating scratches when you look at it wrong, it’s still not a great user experience.
A lot of the time the scratches you see are in the oleophobic coating. That coating is not permanent and wears over time. You can DIY replace it. Doing so can sometimes lessen the appearance of micro scratches.
Score: 9 Votes (Like | Disagree)
ersan191 Avatar
72 months ago
I kind of wish Apple would say their products contain gorilla glass sometimes. I can’t even count how many android fanboys I’ve seen that think that iPhone screens are brittle and delicate compared to their phones when they both use the same damn glass...
Score: 6 Votes (Like | Disagree)
incoherent_1 Avatar
72 months ago
I don’t know if Corning makes the coating, but I would love love love to see more scratch resistant coating.

The glass can be nearly indestructible but if the outer coating scratches when you look at it wrong, it’s still not a great user experience.
Score: 4 Votes (Like | Disagree)
unibility Avatar
72 months ago
Glass is glass. And glass will break.
Score: 3 Votes (Like | Disagree)
HowieIsaacks Avatar
72 months ago
I kind of wish Apple would say their products contain gorilla glass sometimes. I can’t even count how many android fanboys I’ve seen that think that iPhone screens are brittle and delicate compared to their phones when they both use the same damn glass...
They're idiots. It wouldn't matter if Apple advertised that they use gorilla glass. They would still think their crap phones with outdated software are better because they can "customize" them.
Score: 3 Votes (Like | Disagree)