Apple’s UK investment tops £18B, supports 550k jobs

Apple’s UK investment exceeds £18B ($23B) over the past five years, and the company says that it now supports over 550,000 direct and indirect jobs.

CEO Tim Cook said Apple had been serving UK customers for more than 40 years, and now has 40 retail stores in the country …

The job figure includes developers who earn a living from iOS apps.

Apple’s engineering teams in the country have doubled during that time. This builds on Apple’s longstanding connection to the U.K., where the company now supports 550,000 jobs through direct employment, its supply chain, and the iOS app economy. 

“We’ve been serving customers in the U.K. for more than 40 years, and we’re proud of our deep connection with communities across this country,” said Tim Cook, Apple’s CEO. “We’re thrilled to be growing our Apple teams here, and to keep supporting the extraordinary innovators, creators, and entrepreneurs who are pushing the boundaries of technology in so many ways” […]

The country is home to some of the world’s most exciting and talented developers, who are using their imagination and ingenuity to build apps that are loved by users around the world. Since the launch of the App Store in 2008, developers in the U.K. have earned nearly £9 billion from selling digital goods and services. 

The company says that its British engineers play a critical role in Apple Intelligence.

Apple’s U.K. engineering teams — located in London, Cambridge, and throughout the country — perform critical work and research across a wide range of products and services. That includes support for key technologies in Apple Intelligence, such as Siri’s deep integration into Apple products, and Private Cloud Compute, which sets a new standard for privacy in AI. 

Apple TV+ production has also grown rapidly.

[This] has tripled in the past two years, creating jobs in the creative industry, and providing a platform for new and emerging local talent to showcase their work to a global audience. Apple TV+ not only supports jobs for cast and crew, but also contracts with hundreds of suppliers across business sectors — from construction and manufacturing to hospitality and technical services.

Photo of Apple’s UK headquarters in Battersea Power Station: Apple