Tim Cook has received a ‘special investment’ award from Irish Prime Minister Leo Varadkar in recognition of Apple’s forty year ‘unshakeable’ relationship with Ireland.
Apple opened its first factory in Cork, Ireland four years after it was founded, employing 60 people. Today Apple is Cork’s largest employer with 6,000 people of over 100 different nationalities working in the country, home to Apple’s European headquarters.
Within a statement shared IDA Ireland, Cook said “Ireland has been a second home for Apple for forty years and this honour is even more special for us because it recognizes the contributions of our incredible team here who work tirelessly to serve our customers around the country, and around the world. I believe deeply that our most important work together is still ahead of us, and I’m grateful to the people of Ireland for their commitment to openness, to innovation and to the cooperation that will make possible the next generation of world-changing ideas.”