Apple to Build $1 Billion Campus in Austin, Add Jobs Around Country
*By Carlo Versano*
Apple says it will build a $1 billion new campus in Austin, Tex. that would almost double the size of its current footprint in the city, with the room to house as many as 15,000 new jobs.
Apple ($AAPL) made the announcement in an early morning press release, in which the company also committed to adding offices with 1,000 new jobs in Seattle, San Diego, and Culver City, Calif., as well as expand its operations in Pittsburgh, Colorado, Portland, Boston, and New York in the coming years.
Apple's decision to build out its presence in Austin is a sign that the famously eccentric city in the middle of Texas is rapidly becoming a tech hub in its own right. Dell ($DVMT), Amazon ($AMZN), IBM ($IBM), and Facebook ($FB) are among the technology giants that call Austin home, and the city hosts the SXSW tech and media festival every spring.
“Their decision to expand operations in our state is a testament to the high-quality workforce and unmatched economic environment that Texas offers," Texas Gov. Greg Abbott said of Apple.
Apple's decision to announce its expansion plans by press release stood in contrast to the year-long pageantry of Amazon's HQ2 search. That expansion will create 50,000 new jobs, Amazon has said.
Apple said it is on track to create 20,000 jobs in the U.S. by 2023. Those are largely non-manufacturing jobs, which the company still keeps overseas, to the [dismay](https://twitter.com/realDonaldTrump/status/1038453273286664193?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw) of President Trump.
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Roomba maker iRobot has filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection, but says that it doesn’t expect any disruptions to devices as the more than 30-year-old company is taken private under a restructuring process. iRobot said that it is being acquired by Picea through a court-supervised process. Picea is the company's primary contract manufacturer. The Bedford, Massachusetts-based anticipates completing the prepackaged chapter 11 process by February.
Serbia’s prosecutor for organized crime has charged a government minister and three others with abuse of position and falsifying of documents related to a luxury real estate project linked to U.S. President Donald Trump’s son-in-law Jared Kushner. The charges came on Monday. The investigation centers on a controversy over a a bombed-out military complex in central Belgrade that was a protected cultural heritage zone but that is facing redevelopment as a luxury compound by a company linked to Kushner. The $500 million proposal to build a high-rise hotel, offices and shops at the site has met fierce opposition from experts at home and abroad. Selakovic and others allegedly illegally lifted the protection status for the site by falsifying documentation.
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A rare magnum of Dom Pérignon Vintage 1961 champagne that was specially produced for the 1981 wedding of Prince Charles and Lady Diana has failed to sell during an auction. Danish auction house Bruun Rasmussen handled the bidding Thursday. The auction's house website lists the bottle as not sold. It was expected to fetch up to around $93,000. It is one of 12 bottles made to celebrate the royal wedding. Little was revealed about the seller. The auction house says the bids did not receive the desired minimum price.
