Mercedes-Benz will establish its North American HQ in Georgia, moving hundreds of jobs
ATLANTA (AP) — Mercedes-Benz announced Thursday that it plans establish its North American headquarters in metro Atlanta, where the automaker will expand its existing U.S. corporate hub by adding hundreds of jobs relocated from other cities.
The change will add about 500 jobs to the Georgia facility that has served as Mercedes-Benz's U.S. headquarters since 2018. It employs about 800 people currently. The German automaker said in a news release that it also plans to add a new, multimillion-dollar research and development center nearby.
Most of the additional jobs coming to Sandy Springs north of Atlanta are being moved from the Detroit area, where Mercedes-Benz is closing its financial services headquarters.
Mercedes-Benz said in a news release that the headquarters expansion in Georgia should be completed by August 2026.
"Bringing our teams closer together will enable us to be more agile, increase speed to market, and ensure the best customer experience,' Jason Hoff, CEO of Mercedes-Benz North America, said in a statement.
The headquarters expansion bolsters Georgia's reputation for luring automotive jobs. Porsche also has its North American headquarters outside Atlanta, while Hyundai and Kia both have large manufacturing plants in the state. Electric SUV maker Rivian is also building a Georgia factory.
'Georgia continues to lead the way in the future of mobility and technical innovation, attracting world-class companies like Mercedes-Benz that are driving the automotive industry forward,' Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp said in a statement.
The Associated Press
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
The Hill
12 minutes ago
- The Hill
Fans get in line, long lines, for highly anticipated launch of the Nintendo Switch 2
TOKYO (AP) — Eager customers joined long lines outside of stores from Tokyo to New York City hours before they opened in hopes of snaring a long-awaited Nintendo Switch 2 video game console. The much anticipated Switch 2, being released around the world Thursday, is an upgrade to its eight-year-old predecessor with new social features meant to draw players into online gaming. Nintendo is counting on the Switch 2 to boost sagging sales. In the U.S., a chaotic pre-order process in April left some fans frustrated after the consoles quickly sold out. Still, some eager fans lined up early Thursday at retailers such as Target in hopes of purchasing a unit. 'I'm just rolling the dice here,' said Edgar Huo, who was in a line of about 25 outside of a Target in the Tribeca neighborhood of Manhattan, New York. Many of those waiting for the store to open had ordered online, but a few like Huo hoped for a chance at purchasing any extra inventory the store had. In Japan, the new consoles were sold through a competitive lottery system that Nintendo said got about 2.2 million applications. Outside the official draw, some retailers offered their own lotteries to pre-order the devices. Koji Takahashi was among those who missed out on the official draw but he was selected in the second round of a lottery held by a major electronics retailer in Japan. He was first in line waiting outside the store, arriving four hours ahead of its opening. He hoped to secure a limited supply of Nintendo accessories to buy along with his pre-ordered Switch 2. 'I feel very sorry for those who weren't successful in the lottery. But I also had tough time getting this far, so I hope they forgive me!' Takahashi said. Nintendo of America President Doug Bowser told CBS Morning Plus today that the company is aware of the demand for its newest system and is working to get units into the hands of customers. 'We have a steady supply of manufacturing that will be coming in, and we believe we'll be able to meet that demand all the way through the summer, through Father's Day and then on into the holiday period also,' Bowser said. The new console comes with a larger and higher resolution screen than its predecessor, with improved processing power, offering smoother and more vivid graphics. Central to its updated system is a new 'C' button on its controller, which will launch a 'GameChat' feature that requires a subscription to Nintendo's Switch online service. It allows players to 'communicate with friends and family while playing a game,' and lets them share their game screen with others. A built-in microphone will also allow chatting with other gamers. Nintendo has said it expects to sell 15 million Switch 2 consoles for the fiscal year through March 2026. The company has promised to roll out attractive software for the Switch 2 later this year, including 'The Legend of Zelda' games, a Pokemon title and a Kirby game, as well as offerings from outside software companies. Nintendo is capitalizing on the launch with the opening of a store in San Francisco and the Super Nintendo World amusement facility in Orlando, Florida, both set for this month. The Switch 2's rollout arrives at an uncertain time for much of the gaming industry due to new tariffs implemented by U.S. President Donald Trump. In the U.S., the Switch 2's baseline launch price is $449.99 — significantly higher than the original Switch's $299 price tag. U.S. preorders for the Switch 2 were delayed for several weeks so the company could assess the potential impact of tariffs.
The Hill
17 minutes ago
- The Hill
Apple's loses bid to halt court ruling that blocks some fees from its iPhone app store
SAN FRANCISCO (AP) — A three-judge appeals panel rejected Apple's request to pause an April 30 order banning the company from charging a fee on in-app iPhone transactions processed outside its once-exclusive payment system in a two-page decision issued late Thursday. The setback threatens to divert billions of dollars in revenue away from Apple while it tried to overturn the order reining in its commissions from e-commerce within iPhone apps. Apple sought to put the order on hold after it was issued by U.S. District Judge Yvonne Gonzalez-Rogers in a stinging rebuke that also held the Cupertino, California, company in civil contempt of court and recommended opening a criminal investigation into whether one of its executives had committed perjury while testifying in her Oakland, California, courtroom. It marked another twist of the screw in a legal battle initiated nearly five years ago by video game maker Epic Games, which alleged Apple had turned the iPhone's app store had been turned into a price-gouging monopoly. The antitrust case focused largely on the 15% to 30% commissions that Apple rakes in from a portion of the commerce conducted within iPhone apps under a system that prohibited app makers from offering alternative payment methods. Apple is still seeking to overturn Gonzalez-Rogers' ruling in the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals, but her order blocking Apple's commissions on some in-app commerce will remain in effect while potentially leaving a dent in its profits. 'The long national nightmare of the Apple tax is ended,' Epic Games CEO Tim Sweeney wrote in a post after the appeals court denied Apple's request. Apple didn't immediately respond to a request for comment. Although Gonzalez-Rogers mostly sided with Apple in her initial 2021 ruling in the case, she ordered the company to begin allowing apps to include links to alternative payment systems — a decision that withstood appeals that went all the way to the Supreme Court in 2024. Apple then complied by requiring commissions of 12% to 27%, provoking Epic to ask Gonzalez-Rogers to hold Apple in contempt of her order. After holding a new round of hearings that unfolded over a nine-month period straddling last year and this year, Gonzalez-Rogers brought down another legal hammer on Apple.
The Hill
17 minutes ago
- The Hill
Trump and Musk's relationship flames out just as it started, intensely and publicly
WASHINGTON (AP) — The breakup between the president of the United States and the world's richest man is unfurling much like their relationship started — rapidly, intensely and very publicly. As President Donald Trump sat in the Oval Office on Thursday with Germany's leader at his side, he lamented his soured relationship with Elon Musk, his adviser-turned-social media antagonist. Trump said he was 'very disappointed' with Musk after the billionaire former backer lambasted the president's signature bill of tax cuts and spending plans. Trump suggested Musk, who left the government last month after spearheading the tumultuous Department of Government Efficiency, misses being in the White House and has 'Trump derangement syndrome.' 'He hasn't said bad about me personally, but I'm sure that will be next,' Trump said. 'But I'm very disappointed in Elon. I've helped Elon a lot.' Observers had long wondered if the friendship between the two brash billionaires known for lobbing insults online would flame out in spectacular fashion. It did, in less than a year. 'Look, Elon and I had a great relationship. I don't know if we will anymore,' Trump said. He said that he had helped Musk a lot and brushed aside the billionaire's efforts to get him elected last year, claiming that he would have won closely contested Pennsylvania even without Musk's help, which included spending at least $250 million supporting his campaign. The Republican president's comments came as Musk has continued a storm of social media posts attacking Trump's 'Big Beautiful Bill' and warning it will increase the federal deficit. Musk has called Trump's big tax break bill a 'disgusting abomination.' As Trump spoke to reporters at the White House on Thursday, Musk was watching. 'False,' he fired back on his social media platform as the president continued speaking. 'This bill was never shown to me even once and was passed in the dead of night so fast that almost no one in Congress could even read it!' Trump said Musk, the CEO and founder of Tesla, 'only developed a problem' with the bill because it rolls back tax credits for electric vehicles. 'Whatever,' Musk snapped back in a post on X responding to a video clip of the moment. He went on and said Trump could keep the cuts but should 'ditch the MOUNTAIN of DISGUSTING PORK in the bill.' The bill would unleash trillions of dollars in tax cuts and slash spending but also spike deficits by $2.4 trillion over a decade and leave some 10.9 million more people without health insurance, according to an analysis by the Congressional Budget Office, which for decades has served as the official scorekeeper of legislation in Congress.
