Apple announced that they will be opening two new R&D centres in China. The tech giant previously announced sites in Beijing and ShenZhen, will now be opening the new centres in Shanghai and SuZhou.

Apple pledged to invest over 3.5 billion RMB (more than $500 million USD) in the R&D centres in China. Apple’s engineering and operations team in China will focus on working with more local technology partners, to develop technical experts in the Apple supply chain, as well as recruit graduates from universities such as Peking University, Tsinghua University and Shanghai Jiao Tong University. The company has partnered with schools to include internship programs to help develop new entrepreneurs.

“We are looking forward to working with more local partners and academic institutions through the expansion of R&D centres in China,” said Dan Riccio, senior vice president of hardware engineering at Apple. “China has excellent talent and positive entrepreneurial spirit. We are honoured to work with the developers and suppliers here, to help grow our business in this market.”

In China, Apple currently operate 22 offices and 46 retailers, with over 12,000 direct hires. All four centres will be opening later this year.