Apple CEO Tim Cook earlier today updated the company’s progress on providing medical gear to hospitals. Cook said Apple has so far sourced over 20 million masks globally through its supply chain. Apple is also working on custom face shields for medical works.
Cook made the announcement through a video spanning over 2 minutes on Twitter. This update comes after Cook announced Apple will be donating millions of masks to health professionals in the US and Europe. Cook also highlighted the company’s work on making custom face shields for health workers.
Apple is dedicated to supporting the worldwide response to COVID-19. We’ve now sourced over 20M masks through our supply chain. Our design, engineering, operations and packaging teams are also working with suppliers to design, produce and ship face shields for medical workers. pic.twitter.com/3xRqNgMThX
— Tim Cook (@tim_cook) April 5, 2020
“Our design, engineering, operations and packaging teams are also working with suppliers to design, produce and ship face shields for medical workers,” Cook said.
Apple has already shipped the first batch of these face shields to Kaiser Hospital in Santa Clara, California. Cook also mentioned that the response to these face shields from medical workers has been incredible.
“Our first shipment was delivered to Kaiser hospital facilities in the Santa Clara Valley this past week, and the feedback from doctors was very positive. These pack flat, 100 per box. Each shield is assembles in less than two minutes and is fully adjustable. We’re sourcing materials and manufacturing in the US and China,” Cook said.
The iPhone maker plans to ship 1 million face shields to hospitals by the end of the week. It also hopes to continue shipping 1 million face shields per week.
Apple also launched its Covid-19 screening app and website in partnership with the CDC, the White House Coronavirus Task Force and FEMA. Apple also updated Siri to answer queries on coronavirus like “How do I know if I have coronavirus?”. Siri also gives users access to resources from the CDC and helps users in downloading telehealth apps.
