By: Nick Gambino
The mammoth new Apple Park will be one of the largest corporate campuses on the planet when it opens in the coming weeks. As it stands it’ll cover 175 acres in Apple’s hometown of Cupertino, CA.
We’ve seen tours of the sprawling tech site by way of drone before but the newest video footage shows Apple Park lit up against the night sky as laborers work through the night.
The 3 ½ minute video brings us up to date on where the exteriors stand. There seems to be a decent amount of work left with plenty of area without grass or landscaping and what looks like unfinished interiors at about the :50 mark.
Apple Park was originally conceived by Steve Jobs and is estimated to cost about $5 billion. Some other interesting stats include:
- Up to 12,000 employees will fit comfortably on campus.
- The structure will stretch 4 stories above ground but also 3 stories underground.
- The glass exterior in the ring-shaped structure features “the world’s largest panels of curved glass.”
- The café itself can seat up to 3,000. With those kind of numbers, I expect to see a lot of territorial gangs forming, not just cliques.
- Steve Jobs Theater (also on campus) will seat 1,000 and is expected to open next summer.
- 3 different parking structures add up to over 14,000 parking spaces.
- The entire site will run on renewable energy from solar panels and harvested methane.
- The main inner courtyard features a 30-acre green oasis of sorts with fruit orchards, an herb garden and peaceful pond.
“Steve’s vision for Apple stretched far beyond his time with us. He intended Apple Park to be the home of innovation for generations to come,” Apple CEO Tim Cook said. “The workspaces and parklands are designed to inspire our teams as well as benefit the environment. We’ve achieved one of the most energy-efficient buildings in the world and the campus will run entirely on renewable energy.”
Now obviously, this is a campus for employees but there will be a visitors center that features an Apple Store and eatery. So, if you want to pop over there and beg for a job tell them I sent you.
No official word on when Apple Park will open its doors but the original plan was April of this year.
What do you think of the tech giant’s monstrous new campus? Let us know your thoughts in the comments below!
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Nick Gambino is a regular script writer and tech beat reporter for NewsWatch. He lives in Northern Virginia with his wife and daughter.
