Apple Scraps In-House Effort to Make Watch Displays, Cuts Jobs

1. Apple Inc. is ending a project to develop its own smartwatch displays with microLED technology.
2. The displays were intended for future Apple Watch models and potentially other products.
3. The project was halted due to high costs and complexity, leading to a reorganization of display engineering teams and job cuts in the US and Asia.
4. This decision coincided with Apple canceling work on a self-driving car project.
5. Affected employees may be offered other roles within the company or face layoffs with severance packages.
6. Apple aimed to design more technology in-house to gain a competitive advantage over rivals.
7. The company saw potential in microLED technology for its power efficiency, color accuracy, and ability to create thinner devices.
8. The project began seven years ago and was later overseen by Wei Chen in Apple’s display group.
9. A manufacturing facility for microLED screens was established in Santa Clara, California.
10. Job cuts mainly affected employees at the manufacturing site and display engineering centers in Asia.