MP Materials Qualifies GM Magnets, Lines Up Apple for 2026

MP Materials (NYSE:MP) has qualified rare earth magnets for General Motors and is now ramping production — with Apple slated to come online as a customer next year, CEO and Chairman Jim Litinsky told an investor conference this week.

The qualification marks a milestone in the company's push beyond mining and refining into finished magnet manufacturing. MP's magnetics business already employs more than 300 people, and Litinsky said the immediate priorities are increasing output at the Independence facility and completing the planned 10X magnet manufacturing project with the Department of War (the renamed Pentagon, the U.S. defense department).

What has the Pentagon committed to?

The Pentagon has contracted for 100% of the planned 10X production. Litinsky said MP can allocate that output to customers as it chooses, so long as American industry gets supplied first.

He said the Department of War selected MP because the company can do mining, refining, metal making and magnet manufacturing inside the United States — and that the Pentagon wanted to expand that capability tenfold. Asked whether a Democratic-controlled Congress could affect the agreement, Litinsky pointed to a binding contract and expectations of continued bipartisan support for critical minerals. He said MP has "almost no concern" about changes to its deal.

Takeaway: the government has bought the entire planned expansion, which de-risks the buildout.

How much rare earth is MP actually producing?

Litinsky put MP's rare earth oxide production run rate above 50,000 tons, moving toward 60,000 tons. The refining operation, he said, is running at a substantially normalized level. Planned projects include chlor-alkali production (a chemical process supplying inputs for refining) and a recycling program for Apple.

On the technology side, MP has cut the heavy rare earth content in magnets meeting automotive specifications by roughly 50% to 60% over the past two years. Once 10X comes online, the company expects to satisfy many uses — including some robotics and defense applications — without heavy rare earths at all.

The real bottleneck, Litinsky argued, is neodymium-praseodymium (NdPr), the key input for high-strength permanent magnets. He cited MP and Australia's Lynas as the principal existing NdPr producers outside China, and noted that much of Lynas' output is committed to Japan. He described the U.S.-China trade situation as an "uneasy détente," with Chinese export licensing still restricting access for some applications.

Takeaway: supply, not chemistry, is the constraint that matters.

How big could robotics demand get?

Litinsky estimated a humanoid robot could require roughly three to five kilograms of magnets, though he cautioned that designs and estimates vary. A manufacturer producing 1 million humanoid robots annually, he said, could consume approximately 40% to 70% of MP's planned 10X capacity.

MP is already receiving robotics-related requests for quotations that exceed planned 10X production. But he was blunt on timing: large-scale demand is unlikely to be a 2026 or 2027 event and could develop over the next three to five years.

On substitution risk, Litinsky said alternatives to rare earth magnets exist for electric vehicles but typically involve higher material costs or reduced efficiency. In robotics, substitution would be harder still, because compact components and torque density (the twisting force a motor generates relative to its size) are critical.

Takeaway: robotics could be enormous — just not quickly.

What comes next?

Apple has agreed to purchase a minimum of $500 million of magnets from the Independence facility and is the foundational customer for MP's recycling business. Litinsky said he expects the magnetics business to become materially larger over time, but MP intends to expand methodically rather than speculate on capacity.

He also flagged potential M&A: MP could look to acquire other assets if opportunities emerge at attractive prices.

Takeaway: ramp Independence, finish 10X, keep the balance sheet disciplined.

MP Materials operates the Mountain Pass rare earth mine and processing facility in California, a major North American source of rare earth materials used in electric vehicles, wind turbines, electronics and defense systems.