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 Apple Inc. opened a production laboratory in northern Taiwan where engineers are developing new display technologies, according to people with knowledge of the facility. 
 
 The Apple building in Longtan has at least 50 engineers and other workers creating new screens for devices including iPhones and iPads, the people said, asking not to be identified because the details aren’t public. Apple has recruited from local display maker AU Optronics Corp. and Qualcomm Inc., which used to own the building, the people said. 
 
 Kristin Huguet, a spokeswoman for Apple in Cupertino, California, declined to comment. 
 
 Apple began operating the lab this year as it aims to make products thinner, lighter, brighter and more energy-efficient. Engineers are developing more-advanced versions of the liquid-crystal displays currently used in iPhones, iPads and Mac personal computers, the people said. Apple also is keen to move to organic light-emitting diodes, which are even thinner and don’t require a backlight, they said. 
 
 Apple Gets More Bang for Its R&D Buck 
 
 Samsung, Sharp 
 
 Making its iPhones and iPads slimmer and longer-lasting with each generation has been a hallmark of Apple, helping drive $178 billion in annual sales from the two product categories. 
 
 By working directly on the development of display technologies, Apple can reduce reliance on the technology developed by suppliers such as Samsung Electronics Co., LG Display Co., Sharp Corp. and Japan Display Inc. Instead, the company can develop the production processes in-house and outsource to smaller manufacturers such as Taiwan’s AU Optronics or Innolux Corp. 
 
 Shares of AU Optronics surged 7 percent, the most in four months, in Taipei and Innolux jumped 2.6 percent. Japan Display dropped 3.9 percent in Tokyo to the lowest in more than two months, and Sharp fell 1.6 percent. 
 
 Job Postings 
 
 Apple does the bulk of its research at its headquarters in Cupertino and outsources the manufacturing of almost all devices and components to suppliers such as Foxconn Technology Group and Japan Display. The iPhone maker also employs scientists and engineers globally to develop materials and manufacturing technologies. 
 
 Apple continues looking for engineers to work at its display panel facilities, according to job postings on LinkedIn Corp.’s website. 
 
 Tucked in a corner of Longtan Science Park, between a forest and the building site for a new biotechnology factory, the structure shows no outward indications of belonging to the world’s most valuable company. Fifty kilometers (31 miles) from downtown Taipei and within an hour’s drive of the Foxconn headquarters, the white-tiled factory displays no corporate signage, a stark contrast to neighboring plants emblazoned with 3-foot-tall logos for Leotek Electronics Corp., Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co. and AU Optronics. 
 
 Qualcomm Displays 
 
 A short driveway, a half-dozen steps and sliding glass doors lead to a counter and a receptionist in front of an Apple logo on the wall. That sign, and an iMac displaying Apple’s standard visitor registration screen, are the only visible indicators Apple resides here. 
 
 The receptionist wouldn’t provide the name or contact details for someone who could talk about the facility. Guards at an outside security post also declined to give contact details for anyone responsible. 
 
 Records from the Hsinchu Science Park management office, which manages the Longtan facility, show Apple moved into the factory in April and that Qualcomm Panel Manufacturing Ltd. had occupied the site from 2008. 
 
 Records from the economics ministry show Apple last amended its Taiwan registration in October. The form now shows the Longtan address, changed from an earlier listing in downtown Taipei, as the headquarters of Taiwan Apple LLC. The site was where Qualcomm tried to develop its own displays called Mirasol. 
 
 Samsung, which makes both components and consumer devices, is among the few suppliers currently offering smartphones with OLED displays, which typically are more expensive to produce than LCDs. 
 
 On Monday, a small group of workers with Apple ID badges around their necks stepped off the property for a smoking break amid the hum of industrial filters. They declined to comment on the building’s purpose and what they’re working on. 
 
 — With assistance by Adam Satariano ||||| Apple has long relied on partners like Samsung, LG, and Sharp for cutting-edge technology to use in iPhones and iPads, but the company is is quietly developing its own brighter, lighter, and thinner iPhone and iPad displays at a new, top-secret lab in Taiwan. 
 
 Apple took over a production facility once occupied by Qualcomm and has recruited some 50 workers to develop new OLED (organic light-emitting diode) displays, according to a Bloomberg report. Engineers at the lab are also working on improved LCDs (liquid-crystal displays), which are advanced versions of what Apple already uses in iPhones and iPads. 
 
 Of course, Apple isn’t confirming or denying the activities afoot at its new lab. 
 
 Why this matters: A lab isn’t a plant, so it looks like Apple will continue to rely on manufacturers like Foxconn to churn out parts. But the company is known for exerting control over every detail of its hardware, so it’s not surprising that it plans to take over such an integral part of the development process. Thinner, lighter displays could mean thinner, lighter iPhones and iPads, or they could free up space for larger batteries with longer life, which is a long-requested feature from even the most diehard Apple fans. Apple clearly recognizes the need for more powerful batteries—the company just last week introduced its first smart battery case for the iPhone. ||||| Exclusive 
 
 Apple's top-secret Sunnyvale, Calif., automotive testing facility has been the source of loud "motor noises" late at night that irked at least one nearby neighbor, AppleInsider has discovered. 
 
 
 
 
 
 Artist's (poor) rendering of an Apple garage. 
 
 Apple has built an "auto work area" and "repair garage" in the town of Sunnyvale, where one neighbor complained of "motor noises" late at night. 
 
 
 
 Construction at Apple's Sunnyvale campus, as seen last year. 
 
 More coverage: 
 
 A resident who lives near Apple's automotive campus in Sunnyvale issued a complaint to city officials last year over concern about noise coming from the property. Major renovations at the Apple-occupied site have been in the works, including the addition of an "auto work area" and a "repair garage," AppleInsider was first to reveal last March.Whether the sounds were construction or something else remains unknown, as Apple has gone to great lengths to conceal what it is doing at the property."(Do) there have to (be) motor noises at 11:00 p.m. at night like last night?" the resident wrote to the city of Sunnyvale. "Even with the windows closed I could still hear it."Apple occupies seven buildings, comprising nearly 300,000 square feet, of a large office complex in the city. One of the buildings, street number "175," was advertised as home to a mysterious company named SixtyEight Research, believed to be a shell corporation for Apple to conceal its real intentions.Sources have indicated to AppleInsider that shipments related to the development of Apple's "Project Titan" automotive effort have been sent to its Sunnyvale campus, just minutes away from the 1 Infinite Loop headquarters. Specifically, "Project Titan" is said to be based out of a building known internally as "SG5."Whether the developments at the site are related to the advancement of the CarPlay platform or are a part of something larger— like a full-fledged Apple-built car —remains a mystery.And Apple, of course, intends to keep it that way. Last year, representatives for the property received permits to build a 10-foot-tall security fence around the buildings Apple occupies, citing the need for both "physical security" and "visual privacy." The permits were required because the fence exceeds local height restrictions.Numerous additional permits for construction inside the buildings specifically say the improvements were done "for Apple," leaving little question as to who requested the security fence, and who is responsible for the late-night noises.
– Apple recently opened a "secret laboratory" in Taiwan, Bloomberg reports, though no logos or Apple signage underscore that fact on the outside of the building in Longtan. Guards and a receptionist provided no information on what goes on inside the building; neither did workers outside on a smoke break. And an Apple spokesperson refused to comment. So what is going on in this mysterious Apple outpost? Sadly it seems it's just a bunch of engineers working on the next generation of iPad and iPhone screens. Sources speaking anonymously tell Bloomberg the laboratory contains at least 50 workers trying to make brighter and more energy-efficient screens that are thinner and weigh less than the current ones. By developing its own screens, Apple would no longer have to rely on technologies from other companies, such as Sharp and Samsung. Macworld reports this makes sense, since Apple wants to have as much control over its hardware as possible. In addition to better displays, smaller screens could also mean more room for much-demanded longer-lasting batteries. Perhaps coincidentally, though in that vein, the Washington Post notes a new rumor that Apple is coming out with a new generation of smaller iPhones, possibly due in March.