Most of my articles — including this one — are written on a Mac Mini. I’m a genuine fan of the machine. It’s compact, reliable, and just works.
If you’ve ever opened an Apple box, you’ve seen the familiar line: “Designed by Apple in California.” It’s technically accurate. It’s also carefully crafted branding. Apple products may be designed in California, but they aren’t made there. They aren’t even made in America. They’re manufactured in China, India, Vietnam, Malaysia, and across Asia. By some estimates, roughly 80% of Apple’s production capacity is in China. “Designed in California” sounds patriotic, but the supply chain tells a different story.
But on Tuesday, something shifted.
Apple announced that it will begin manufacturing Mac Minis in Houston, Texas, later this year at a new Advanced Manufacturing Center. The facility, which will also produce the company’s advanced AI servers, will double Apple’s footprint at its existing Houston site. CEO Tim Cook called the move a point of pride. “Apple is deeply committed to the future of American manufacturing, and we’re proud to significantly expand our footprint in Houston with the production of Mac mini starting later this year,” he said in a statement.
So, why is this happening? Thank you, President Donald Trump. This is all happening because of Trump’s “Made in America” agenda to bring manufacturing back to the United States.
Apple’s move is the latest development among Silicon Valley tech giants and other major firms who are choosing to move part or all of their operations to Texas in the past six years. Tesla, SpaceX, Oracle, Hewlett-Packard, Chevron and Charles Schwab have all moved their headquarters to the Lone Star State from California.
The migration of companies from California to Texas has put the state on the map for tech-based growth, with Austin’s booming tech sector earning the nickname “Silicon Hills.”
Apple’s decision to invest in the U.S. was announced at a meeting between Cook and Trump in 2025. The president has attempted to use tariffs and other measures to bring manufacturing back to the country.
To be fair, the skeptics have a point worth acknowledging. The Mac Mini accounts for less than 1% of all Mac sales, according to Consumer Intelligence Research Partners. Moving production of a niche desktop computer to Texas is hardly a wholesale reinvention of Apple's supply chain. The vast majority of iPhones, iPads, and other Apple hardware still roll off assembly lines in Asia.
It’s a start, and it isn't nothing, either. It fits into a broader and very real trend of major companies fleeing California for Texas. Tesla, SpaceX, Oracle, Hewlett-Packard, Chevron, and Charles Schwab have all relocated their headquarters to the Lone Star State over the past six years. Austin's tech boom has grown so pronounced that the city earned the nickname "Silicon Hills."
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Cook met with Trump in 2025 and pledged that Apple would invest $500 billion — later revised to $600 billion — over four years to boost U.S. manufacturing. It shouldn’t be lost on anyone that Texas is the new land of opportunity in the United States, not California. Low taxes, less regulation, and a workforce hungry for opportunity have made the state a magnet for the kind of investment that creates real jobs.
My next Mac Mini will be designed in California, but it’ll be made in Texas — and honestly, that sounds pretty good to me.
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