Apple is reportedly looking to develop a data center in Taiwan.

Rumors are currently circulating that the company is negotiating plans for a data center development with third-party manufacturers, reports UDN.

Despite this, the Department of Digital Development has so far declined to confirm whether or not the project is ongoing.

If confirmed, it is hoped that Foxconn - an electronics manufacturer traded locally in China and Taiwan as Hon Hai Precision Industry - will benefit from the project with its longstanding relationship with Apple as an AI server manufacturer.

The project is also hoped to benefit companies including Quanta Computer, Wistron, and Inventec.

In total, UDN's report estimates that the project, via the economic benefits of procuring AI servers, green energy, and any other related hardware could reach NT$100 billion (US$3bn) for Taiwan's economy.

Other major international companies developing or operating data centers in Taiwan include Google, Amazon Web Services (AWS) which shared plans for a Taipei cloud region in June 2024, and Microsoft.

Apple has seven data centers currently operating in the US, Denmark, and China, with two more reportedly under development in the US and Europe. The company also has a presence in other colocation facilities.

A report in April 2024 found that Apple's data center consumed 2.344bn kWh of electricity.

In addition, Apple is a major cloud consumer of other companies.

The company has long been a Google Cloud customer and is believed to be the platform's single biggest storage customer. Last year, it began using Google to develop foundation AI models.

In 2019, it was reported that Apple was spending more than $30 million a month on Amazon Web Services.