U.S. sapphire furnace and sapphire manufacturer GTAT, the primary sapphire supplier to Apple, filed for bankruptcy on October 6. As of September 29, GTAT reported having US $85 million in cash. Under the $578 million multi-year agreement GTAT and Apple signed last November, GTAT must supply a certain volume of sapphire ingots to Apple while Apple was to pay GTAT in four installments with the final $139 million payment scheduled for the end of October. But low sapphire yield rates have made Apple withhold the last payment. Additionally, GTAT lost an American Arbitration Association (AAA) lawsuit against Taiwanese sapphire manufacturer Tera Xtal Technology in August. AAA ruled GTAT should return payment totaling $ 24 million for faulty sapphire crystal growth furnaces, which greatly strained the firm’s finances.

The iPhone 6 might not come with sapphire glass cover, but the Apple Watch will, according to MyDrivers.com. Just how much is this tiny piece of glass worth?

GT Advanced Technology (GTAT) stocks plummeted after Apple announced the new iPhone 6 will not be featuring sapphire cover glass, according to a Reuters report. 

Earlier this month, Chinese smartphone manufacturer Huawei’s Chief Executive Officer Chengdong Yu showed a brand new sapphire glass cover smartphone during a press conference, according to a Chinese-language TechWeb report.

New rumors regarding limited usage of sapphire cover glass usage in iPhone 6 have emerged in Taiwan. According to a Chinese-language Liberty Times report only one out of 10 of Apple's new iPhone 6 will be using the sapphire cover glass.