Apple Donating Over 20 Million Masks to Healthcare Professionals, Producing Face Shields With Suppliers

Apple CEO Tim Cook today shared a video message with an update on the company's response to the ongoing pandemic.

Cook said Apple has now sourced over 20 million masks that it is in the process of donating to healthcare professionals around the world. Apple is working with governments to ensure that the masks are donated to the places of greatest need.

n95 mask
Cook added that Apple's design, engineering, operations, and packaging teams are working with suppliers to design, produce, and ship face shields for medical workers. Apple plans to donate one million face shields by the end of this week, followed by an additional one million per week. Cook said the face shields take less than two minutes to assemble.

The adjustable face shields can be packed flat, allowing 100 to fit in each box. Shipments will initially go to medical facilities in the United States, but Apple plans to expand distribution globally at a later date.

apple face shield
Apple recently delivered its first batch of face shields to Kaiser medical facilities in the Santa Clara Valley and said feedback was very positive.

Popular Stories

maxresdefault

Apple Shows Off a Key Reason to Upgrade to the iPhone 17

Saturday February 7, 2026 9:26 am PST by
Apple today shared an ad that shows how the upgraded Center Stage front camera on the latest iPhones improves the process of taking a group selfie. "Watch how the new front facing camera on iPhone 17 Pro takes group selfies that automatically expand and rotate as more people come into frame," says Apple. While the ad is focused on the iPhone 17 Pro and iPhone 17 Pro Max, the regular iPhone...
Finder Siri Feature

Why Apple's iOS 26.4 Siri Upgrade Will Be Bigger Than Originally Promised

Friday February 6, 2026 3:06 pm PST by
In the iOS 26.4 update that's coming this spring, Apple will introduce a new version of Siri that's going to overhaul how we interact with the personal assistant and what it's able to do. The iOS 26.4 version of Siri won't work like ChatGPT or Claude, but it will rely on large language models (LLMs) and has been updated from the ground up. Upgraded Architecture The next-generation...
wwdc sans text feature

Apple Rumored to Announce New Product on February 19

Thursday February 5, 2026 12:22 pm PST by
Apple plans to announce the iPhone 17e on Thursday, February 19, according to Macwelt, the German equivalent of Macworld. The report, citing industry sources, is available in English on Macworld. Apple announced the iPhone 16e on Wednesday, February 19 last year, so the iPhone 17e would be unveiled exactly one year later if this rumor is accurate. It is quite uncommon for Apple to unveil...
apple wallet drivers license feature iPhone 15 pro

Apple Says These 7 U.S. States Plan to Offer iPhone Driver's Licenses

Monday February 9, 2026 6:24 am PST by
In select U.S. states, residents can add their driver's license or state ID to the Apple Wallet app on the iPhone and Apple Watch, and then use it to display proof of identity or age at select airports and businesses, and in select apps. The feature is currently available in 13 U.S. states and Puerto Rico, and it is expected to launch in at least seven more in the future. To set up the...
14 inch MacBook Pro Keyboard

New MacBook Pros Could Now Arrive in March

Sunday February 8, 2026 6:02 am PST by
New MacBook Pro models with the M5 Pro and M5 Max chips could arrive as soon as Monday, March 2, according to Bloomberg's Mark Gurman. In today's "Power On" newsletter, Gurman said that the release of new MacBook Pro models is tied to the release of macOS Tahoe 26.3. The launch is said to be slated for as early as the week of March 2. He added that the M4 Pro and M4 Max models on sale today...

Top Rated Comments

pdaholic Avatar
76 months ago
My ER received a bunch of Apple’s clear face shields, and I wore one yesterday seeing patients. Worked great! Thanks Apple!
Score: 41 Votes (Like | Disagree)
PickUrPoison Avatar
76 months ago

Hope they help someone.
20 million masks and a million face shields per week. They’ll help tens or hundreds of thousands of healthcare workers.

Without effective response by those in charge, we’re left to rely on charity.

Thanks, Tim Apple.
Score: 20 Votes (Like | Disagree)
lkrupp Avatar
76 months ago
Amazing place, MacRumors. Apple does a good thing and is immediately attacked, its motives questioned, its CEO excoriated and belittled.
Score: 19 Votes (Like | Disagree)
cmaier Avatar
76 months ago

The question needs to be asked: What were they doing with 20 million masks in the first place?
If they didn't have them, but bought them all up to distribute to others, what's the point of that?
It's not like health care places can't afford masks — they can't find any.
And if they couldn't find any? How is it that Apple found/had 20 MILLION of them?

Something seems really weird about this whole thing. It doesn't sound right.
They have a supply chain throughout the world. They know where to find factories that can churn these things out. The governor of a random state probably doesn’t. The U.S. government presumably could have done the same thing.
Score: 15 Votes (Like | Disagree)
mikethebigo Avatar
76 months ago

The question needs to be asked: What were they doing with 20 million masks in the first place?
If they didn't have them, but bought them all up to distribute to others, what's the point of that?
It's not like health care places can't afford masks — they can't find any.
And if they couldn't find any? How is it that Apple found/had 20 MILLION of them?

Something seems really weird about this whole thing. It doesn't sound right.
Did it seriously not occur to you that their factories probably regularly use face masks in their production lines?
Score: 15 Votes (Like | Disagree)
adamjackson Avatar
76 months ago
Thank you Apple.
Score: 14 Votes (Like | Disagree)