Apple to expand applied research lab in China

US tech giant Apple announced on Tuesday that it will expand its applied research lab in Shanghai and establish a new lab in Shenzhen later this year.

The labs in Shanghai and Shenzhen will support intelligent manufacturing, along with the reliability, quality, and material analysis of products, providing resources for the global engineering and design team, according to Isabel Ge Mahe, Apple's vice president and managing director of Greater China.

Apple said it has cumulatively invested 1 billion yuan (US$140 million) in building applied research labs in China.

Apple has been working on development in China for over 30 years. Data shows that 151 out of the company's 200 major suppliers have production activities in China.

Currently, it has research and development centers in Beijing, Shanghai, Suzhou and Shenzhen. Over the past five years, its research and development team in China has doubled in size.